Globally, there has been a significant uptick in regulatory mandates and enforcement. These developments have presented challenges for businesses, while also creating opportunities for strategic M&A. Attorneys Ayşe Yüksel Mahfoud and Aara Tomar explore regulatory trends applying pressure to global markets in a recently published article.

In doing so the authors observe increasingly aggressive competition regimes across the globe. While the authors identified the U.S. as the jurisdiction believed to see the highest level of antitrust scrutiny, they emphasis that the EU is also making strides toward more rigorous competition and merger control enforcement. Regulated by the European Commission and the authorities of the respective member states, businesses are facing myriad regulatory and enforcement changes according to the authors.

The authors conclude that it is becoming increasingly crucial for businesses to be fully informed about the regulations impacting them. In the context of M&A, the new regulatory framework requires buyers to be equipped with tools to address any surprising turns during deals. These tools include tactical contractual terms and strategic handling of regulators. Businesses with global presence need to be wary of the occasionally inconsistent approaches by the regulators in different regions.