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ARTICLE · 14 APRIL 2025

GAC Issues New Merger Guidelines. Updated Thresholds And Other Amendments

BREMER LF WLL
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On 1 July 2024, the Saudi antitrust regulator—the General Authority for Competition (GAC)—proposed amendments to the Merger Control Guidelines.

Saudi ArabiaCorporate/Commercial Law
Maryam Abdelgwad
Maryam Abdelgwad
Nicolas Bremer
Nicolas Bremer
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On 1 July 2024, the Saudi antitrust regulator—the General Authority for Competition (GAC)—proposed amendments to the Merger Control Guidelines. These proposals introduced significant changes including amendments to notification thresholds, the validity period for clearance decisions, exemptions for certain foreign and Saudi joint ventures, and details on the concept of a change of control. The final version of the proposed amendments was originally expected to enter into force in August 2024. The amendments were now issued with the 5th edition of GAC Merger Guidelines. These largely reflects the substance of the earlier proposals with only minor amendments.

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