The European Commission has cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the proposed joint venture between the Italian financial institutions Unicredit S.p.A. and Banca IMI S.p.A, a company of the Intesa San Paolo Group. The planned transaction would transform the existing joint venture TLX S.p.A. into a new full function joint venture Euro TLX Societa Intermediazione Mobiliare S.p.A (Euro TLX SIM). After examining the operation, the Commission concluded that the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition in the European Economic Area (EEA) or any substantial part of it.
UniCredit is an international financial institution offering a wide range of banking and financial services in several European countries. Banca IMI is an investment company belonging to the banking group Intesa San Paolo. TLX is currently jointly controlled by UniCredit and Banca IMI and manages two electronic platforms for trading in financial instruments, principally for the account of its parent companies.
Upon completion of the planned transaction, TLX would change its name to Euro TLX SIM and would start operating a single electronic platform for trading in financial instruments named Euro TLX offering services to third parties on a commercial basis.
The Commission’s examination of the proposed transaction found that there were no horizontal overlaps between the parties' activities. The Commission's investigation found that the operation would not raise any vertical concerns either, in particular due to the "best execution" requirements to which UniCredit and Banca IMI would be subject under the European Directive on markets in financial instruments (so-called "MiFID" Directive, 2004/39/EC). It also showed that the entity resulting from the transaction would compete with other established players , thereby enhancing competition and enlarging the choice of providers.
More information on the case will be available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/m109.html#m_5495
