The Minister of Economic Development yesterday published an amendment to Regulation 10(5) of the Competition Commission Rules in Government Gazette No. 42082 (available here). In terms of the amendment, new merger filing fees for intermediate and large mergers will be effective from
1 January 2019:
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ZAR 165,000.00 for an intermediate merger (increased from ZAR 150,000)
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ZAR 550,000.00 for a large merger (increased from ZAR 500,000)
The Minister increased the merger filing fees substantially last year to improve resources at the competition authorities, and it is likely that this latest increase in filing fees is also aimed at addressing on-going resource challenges.
Businesses currently planning mergers in South Africa may have to consider whether these new filing fees will have any effect on the commercial and regulatory aspects of their transactions.
We will continue to keep you updated as developments arise.
