Merger Decisions Provide Important Guidance

In January 2022, Thailand's Trade Competition Commission ("TCC") issued three merger decisions that provide important guidance on the application of Thailand's merger regime. Pursuant to Section 51 of the Trade Competition Act B.E. 2560 (2017) ("TCA"), a business operator who carries out a business merger which may result in a significant reduction of competition in any market shall either notify the result of such business merger to, or obtain permission from, the TCC.

The three issued decisions interpret what constitutes a business operator for purposes of the TCA. Each decision involved mergers between two foreign entities. In determining whether each of the transactions involved business operators, the TCC focused on two key issues: