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ARTICLE · 04 MARCH 2025

Foreign Investment Control Regimes Reach Far And Hit Hard

A&O Shearman
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Foreign investment (FDI) screening regimes continued to present challenges for dealmakers. We saw tough intervention in key jurisdictions.

GlobalGovernment, Public Sector
A&O Shearman
A&O Shearman
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Foreign investment (FDI) screening regimes continued to present challenges for dealmakers. We saw tough intervention in key jurisdictions. New and expanding rules added to regulatory burden. Overall, most deals are cleared without remedies. But the road ahead is hard to predict, with protectionist headwinds expected to add to an already complex environment.

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The global FDI landscape continues to paint a mixed picture. Latest available data shows a dip in the number of FDI decisions in key jurisdictions, including the U.S. and Italy. Elsewhere, review levels rose as expanded—and brand new—regimes subjected more deals to FDI review.

Intervention was similarly varied. FDI concerns resulted in prohibition or remedies in a high proportion of cases in, for example, France (44%) and the U.S. (19%). By contrast, in nearly two thirds of the jurisdictions we analyzed, over 97% of deals notified were cleared without remedies.

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