ACCC Welcomes Passage Of Historic Merger Laws

With the passing of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Mergers and Acquisitions Reform) Bill 2024 by the Australian Parliament yesterday, the ACCC is intensifying its focus to ensure that implementation of the new merger regime is successful when it commences.

The new merger regime will come into effect from 1 January 2026 but will also allow for merger parties to start using the new merger regime on a voluntary basis from 1 July 2025.

"We recognise that this will be a very significant change for the business community and indeed the ACCC. This marks the most significant change to Australia's merger regime since the Trade Practices Act was enacted 50 years ago," ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said.

"We have consistently outlined why the changes are necessary to achieve effective merger control in Australia and ensure there is strong competition across our economy, driving dynamism, productivity and restraint on prices for the benefit of consumers and business."

"We are also acutely aware that successful implementation will be crucial to the overall success of the new regime. Therefore we are working very hard to carry out this important preparation work which we have outlined in the recently released Statement of Goals," Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

"As part of this, we will be working and consulting with businesses and other stakeholders to ensure parties have clarity on timeframes and processes, and that the new regime achieves its intended benefits of increased efficiency and transparency."

Currently Australia's merger regime does not require merger parties to notify the ACCC of proposed acquisitions or to wait for ACCC clearance before proceeding with the acquisition.

Under the new process, all transactions above a prescribed threshold must be notified to the ACCC.

In addition to moving to a mandatory notification system, the historic new merger laws will:

• Provide the ACCC with the tools to better deal with 'serial acquisitions' where a number of smaller transactions occur over time that cumulatively end up causing serious harm to competition.
• Provide for greater transparency for business and the broader community on all mergers considered by the ACCC, including by requiring the ACCC to publish reasons for all final merger decisions.
• Create a more efficient and faster process particularly for non-contentious mergers and more certain timelines for businesses seeking approval.
• Allow the Treasurer to designate certain high risk sectors and impose specific notification thresholds for those sectors.
• Adopt a risk-based approach using enhanced economic and data analysis in the ACCC's administrative decision making.

"As we celebrate these important reforms becoming law, we also are mindful of the importance of supporting a smooth transition as the new regime is bedded down," Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

"We will work closely with key stakeholders and will issue draft guidelines for consultation in early 2025 to assist businesses and stakeholders adapt to the new merger regime."

Background:

Reforms to Australia's existing merger laws were announced by the Treasurer, in April 2024. The Treasurer's announcement was welcomed by the ACCC.

The ACCC first released proposed merger reforms at the Law Council conference in 2021. ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb commenced her term in 2022. She has continued to advocate for merger reform including at the National Press Club in April 2023.

The ACCC's submissions to the Treasury Competition Review, which includes detailed analysis and argues the case for reform can be found here: https://www.accc.gov.au/inquiries-and-consultations/accc-submissions-to-external-consultations#toc-mergers-

In anticipation of the new legislation coming into effect, the ACCC issued a statement of goals in October 2024 to outline its approach to implementing the new regime and to reduce uncertainty during the transition.

Key dates

Some of the key implementation milestones ahead for the Bill include: