The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) has issued rules setting out its timelines for handling merger filings.
Mergers and acquisitions that meet the thresholds for mandatory notification have to be filed within 30 days after signing of the binding agreement. The PCC will then conduct a "sufficiency check" within 15 days. Upon the PCC's confirmation of the sufficiency of the forms and payment of the filing fees, the Phase 1 review takes place, for a maximum period of 30 days. During this review, the PCC may gather supplementary information from the parties and third persons, and conduct site visits of the parties' business premises, their customers and/or competitors.
If the PCC identifies competition concerns during Phase 1, or is unable to form a conclusion on this issue, the transaction will proceed to a Phase 2 review, which must be completed within 60 days. The merger procedure provides for a detailed process during Phase 2, which can include the filing by the PCC's Mergers and Acquisitions Office (MAO) of a statement of concerns, state of play meetings between the parties and the MAO, and the imposition by the PCC of such interim measures as it may deem necessary.
If the PCC finds that the transaction substantially prevents, restricts or lessens competition, it may impose remedies to address the potential negative effects of the transaction.
Parties may propose voluntary commitments at any stage of the Phase 1 or 2 review, except when the PCC has already rendered a decision.
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