The revised Merger Guidelines1 (‘Guidelines’) should ensure that the EU merger control framework supports competitiveness, innovation and investment while preserving legal certainty, predictability and effective competition. The Guidelines should remain firmly anchored in the significant impediment of effective competition (SIEC) test, apply resilience and scale considerations in a headquarters-neutral and effects-based manner, and provide clearer analytical and evidentiary standards for resilience assessments and the new theories of harm.

The Guidelines should recognise the benefits of scale where these deliver demonstrable advantages for EU consumers, apply the innovation shield consistently across all acquirers, maintain appropriate safe harbours and ensure a balanced and symmetrical assessment of harms and benefits. The Guidelines should also strengthen predictability across overlapping transaction review regimes and provide greater certainty for both EU and non-EU investors. Together, these refinements would help ensure that merger control contributes to competitiveness, innovation and economic growth while maintaining a transparent and proportionate enforcement framework.

The EU proposed the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) in 2021 to address foreign subsidies distorting the Single Market. Operating as a screening instrument behind merger control, it requires companies to notify the European Commission of foreign financial contributions (FFCs) they may receive when participating in public procurement or mergers and acquisitions activity. Preventing FFCs from distorting the Single Market is an important goal – and one that must be achieved without creating its own disruptions.

Will Europe choose alignment or fragmentation in foreign investment screening? In a recent blog for fDi Intelligence, Malte Lohan, CEO, and Andrew Hill, Senior Policy Adviser, AmCham EU, examine how divergent national regimes have created legal uncertainty and unnecessary administrative burden for investors and authorities alike. Today’s patchwork encourages over-notification, overwhelms regulators with low-risk cases and introduces avoidable friction for capital. The revised EU Foreign Investment Screening Regulation presents an opportunity to enhance coherence and competitiveness. Its success will depend on consistent implementation across Member States. Convergence would streamline beneficial investment and strengthen the Single Market, while gold-plating risks renewed fragmentation. Read the full op-ed in fDi Intelligence’s Economic Security Watch.

The revision of the Public Procurement Directive (PPD) is a critical opportunity to unlock the full value of public procurement for European competitiveness and resilience. A simpler, more consistent and quality-driven framework would strengthen market access, attract a wider range of bidders and enable public buyers to select best-in-class solutions. 

The revision should prioritise practical ‘how to buy’ reforms, including digitalisation, standardised templates and reusable documentation, to reduce administrative burdens and increase participation. In parallel, ‘what to buy’ reforms should focus on transparent and verifiable criteria that reward performance, security and life-cycle value while avoiding unnecessary complexity that risks reducing competition. 

Learn how, if designed effectively, the PPD can support innovation, resilience and better outcomes for public buyers across the EU. 

AmCham EU has joined eight industry associations to propose several ways to increase the Foreign Subsidies Regulation’s (FSR) proportionality and efficiency. Two years after its entry into force, the FSR has proven overly burdensome, impacting investment decisions and creating uncertainty for companies operating in the EU. The current scope requires excessive data collection and complex filings, diverting resources from growth and innovation. The coalition urges the European Commission to refine the FSR to focus on truly distortive subsidies, streamline procedures and strengthen data protection. Learn how targeted adjustments to the FSR can safeguard fair competition while boosting Europe’s competitiveness in the joint industry statement

The Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) is designed to support fair competition in the EU, but after two years of use it has become more complex and demanding than expected. Companies face heavy reporting requirements, unclear procedures and rising compliance costs, which risk slowing investment and creating uncertainty. To keep Europe competitive, the framework needs to be more focused, balanced and easier to apply. Clearer rules and a more proportionate approach would help ensure the system works as intended. Learn how these improvements can strengthen the FSR and support a more predictable business environment.