Merger transactions climb 72%

The number of merger transactions notified to the Competition Authority in 2004 was up 72% on the previous year, according to a study by leading law firm McCann FitzGerald.

Of the notified deals, 96% were cleared by the Competition Authority in the first phase of the review process, but 2004 was also the year in which the Authority first prohibited a proposed merger under its new merger review regime.