Three years after the introduction of Spain’s FDI General Screening Mechanism (in 2020), Spain has finally approved its FDI Implementing Regulation (for the entire text, unfortunately only available in Spanish, please click here). Although many of the rules now in force could be found in drafts made available by the Ministry for Industry, Commerce and…
Background It has become usual in Spain’s FDI system for reforms to be introduced by measures formally unrelated to FDI. The latest reform is no exception and Articles 61 and 62 of Royal Decree Law 20/2022, of 27 December, addressing the economic and social consequences of the war in Ukraine, supporting the reconstruction of the Island…
“All animals are equal but some are more equal than others” (George Orwell, ‘Animal Farm’) On 28 November 2022, the Council of the European Union gave its final approval to the new EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation 2022/2560 (the FSR). The regulation addresses distortions created by subsidies that are granted by non-EU countries to companies operating…
Almost two and a half years have passed since Spain’s Royal Decree Laws 8/2020, of 17 March, on extraordinary urgent measures to address the economic and social impact of COVID-19, 11/2020, of 31 March, adopting additional urgent social and economic measures to address COVID-19, and 34/2020, of 17 November, on urgent measures to support business…
With the much-debated reforms to Act 19/2003, of 4 July, on capital movements (“Act 19/2003”), the Spanish foreign direct investment (“FDI”) regime has been expanded over the past few years. However, FDI screening in relation to defense investments predates Act 19/2003 (and the recent FDI hype more broadly), and was regulated in Royal Decree 664/1999…
Background The recent proliferation of foreign direct investment regimes (“FDI”) in Europe baffles practitioners and deal makers alike. Why is my acquisition of, say, a developer of grapes in Spain potentially subject to CFIUS-like rules? Can my carefully crafted leveraged buyout of a niche Polish producer of NFTs derail out of national security concerns because…
Background Another day, another ground-breaking change in Spain’s FDI rules. November 2021 has been an eventful month for FDI in Spain. The following two developments are likely to be consequential in the evolution of the country’s policy as regards foreign investments: (i) More than a year after the establishment of the Spanish 2020 FDI ex-ante…
There is a lot of hype about the Spanish FDI regulations introduced by a number of Royal Decrees in 2020: fines of up to the value of the deal, non-controlling acquisition of shares can potentially trigger a filing, etc. And yet, prior to 2020, Spain already had FDI provisions on the books. These pre-2020 FDI…
It has been another exciting year in Spanish Merger Control. To the overarching importance of the pandemic, we have to add political appointments, more Phase II investigations and resort to innovative packages of remedies. The Spanish Enforcer in Times of Pandemic In June 2020, the council of the Comisión Nacional de Mercados y de…
2019 was an eventful year in Spanish antitrust enforcement. Here is a brief overview of 2019’s major legal changes and relevant developments in relation to Competition law in Spain, as well as what to expect in 2020. I. New Administration On 8 January 2020, Mr Pedro Sánchez was reappointed as Spanish Prime Minister….
