Baker McKenzie advised Fluidra, a global leader in pool and wellness equipment and connected solutions, in the German merger control proceeding before the Federal Cartel Office regarding Fluidra's envisaged acquisition of 100 percent of Meranus Group, a leading distributor of swimming pool equipment in Germany.
The Federal Cartel Office cleared the Transaction, unconditionally, following a Phase II merger control proceeding. The clearance decision was preceded by an extensive market investigation by the Federal Cartel Office.
The transaction is one of very few which the Federal Cartel Office cleared unconditionally in a Phase II merger control proceeding, i.e., where it did not require the parties to propose remedies. In 2022, out of 800 transactions notified in Germany, only eight went into a Phase II proceeding. By the end of 2022, none of these transactions was cleared in Phase II without remedies.
"We are proud to have successfully assisted our long-time client Fluidra in the Phase II merger control proceeding and were able to obtain an unconditional clearance decision. Congratulations to the great team at our client Fluidra." said Dr. Nicolas Kredel who chairs Baker McKenzie’s EMEA and German Antitrust & Competition Practice Group.
Founded more than 40 years ago, Meranus Group is a recognized swimming pool equipment distributor in Germany, comprising of Meranus Haan GmbH, Meranus Lauchhammer GmbH, as well as Aquacontrol GmbH, a manufacturer of swimming pool dosing and control technology. Its expected revenues for the year ending 31 December 2022 are over EUR 25 million.
Fluidra, a multinational group listed on the Spanish Stock Exchange, is the global leader in the pool and wellness industry. Founded in 1969, Fluidra has long-standing experience in developing innovative products and services in the global residential and commercial pool market. Fluidra operates in more than 45 countries with more than 7,000 skilled employees, more than 135 sales branches and over 35 production centers around the world. This global platform enables Fluidra to distribute a great variety of products and devices adapting to the peculiarities of each region, pool and customer.
Together, Baker McKenzie's corporate/M&A and antitrust / merger control teams regularly advise on domestic and international transactions. Most recently, Baker McKenzie advised, among others the acquisition of MBCC Group to a successful conclusion for Sika, AURELIUS on the acquisition of LSG Group from Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Nokian Tyres plc on the sale of its Russian business to Tatneft PJSC, First Solar on the sale of its global O&M business to NovaSource, Magna in its acquisition of the Veoneer Active Safety business, MicroVision in its acquisition of the business of Hamburg-based Ibeo Automotive Systems, Trane Technologies in its acquisition of AL-KO Air Technology, Pacoma in its sale to L&P, Deutsche Beteiligungs AG (DBAG) in its investment in the vhf Group, VINCI Energies S. A. in its acquisition of parts of Kontron AG, AURELIUS in its acquisition of AGFA Offset Solutions and of Footasylum from JD Sports, and FUN-KE Digital in its acquisition of Baseplus DIGITAL MEDIA GmbH.
Legal advisor to Fluidra (Antitrust & Competition – Merger Control): Baker McKenzie
Lead: Dr. Nicolas Kredel, LL.M. (partner, Duesseldorf)
Team: Dr. Florian Kotman, Ricarda Brandhorst, Associate (both senior associates, Duesseldorf), Valeria Enrich (partner, Barcelona)
The Federal Cartel Office cleared the Transaction, unconditionally, following a Phase II merger control proceeding. The clearance decision was preceded by an extensive market investigation by the Federal Cartel Office.
The transaction is one of very few which the Federal Cartel Office cleared unconditionally in a Phase II merger control proceeding, i.e., where it did not require the parties to propose remedies. In 2022, out of 800 transactions notified in Germany, only eight went into a Phase II proceeding. By the end of 2022, none of these transactions was cleared in Phase II without remedies.
"We are proud to have successfully assisted our long-time client Fluidra in the Phase II merger control proceeding and were able to obtain an unconditional clearance decision. Congratulations to the great team at our client Fluidra." said Dr. Nicolas Kredel who chairs Baker McKenzie’s EMEA and German Antitrust & Competition Practice Group.
Founded more than 40 years ago, Meranus Group is a recognized swimming pool equipment distributor in Germany, comprising of Meranus Haan GmbH, Meranus Lauchhammer GmbH, as well as Aquacontrol GmbH, a manufacturer of swimming pool dosing and control technology. Its expected revenues for the year ending 31 December 2022 are over EUR 25 million.
Fluidra, a multinational group listed on the Spanish Stock Exchange, is the global leader in the pool and wellness industry. Founded in 1969, Fluidra has long-standing experience in developing innovative products and services in the global residential and commercial pool market. Fluidra operates in more than 45 countries with more than 7,000 skilled employees, more than 135 sales branches and over 35 production centers around the world. This global platform enables Fluidra to distribute a great variety of products and devices adapting to the peculiarities of each region, pool and customer.
Together, Baker McKenzie's corporate/M&A and antitrust / merger control teams regularly advise on domestic and international transactions. Most recently, Baker McKenzie advised, among others the acquisition of MBCC Group to a successful conclusion for Sika, AURELIUS on the acquisition of LSG Group from Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Nokian Tyres plc on the sale of its Russian business to Tatneft PJSC, First Solar on the sale of its global O&M business to NovaSource, Magna in its acquisition of the Veoneer Active Safety business, MicroVision in its acquisition of the business of Hamburg-based Ibeo Automotive Systems, Trane Technologies in its acquisition of AL-KO Air Technology, Pacoma in its sale to L&P, Deutsche Beteiligungs AG (DBAG) in its investment in the vhf Group, VINCI Energies S. A. in its acquisition of parts of Kontron AG, AURELIUS in its acquisition of AGFA Offset Solutions and of Footasylum from JD Sports, and FUN-KE Digital in its acquisition of Baseplus DIGITAL MEDIA GmbH.
Legal advisor to Fluidra (Antitrust & Competition – Merger Control): Baker McKenzie
Lead: Dr. Nicolas Kredel, LL.M. (partner, Duesseldorf)
Team: Dr. Florian Kotman, Ricarda Brandhorst, Associate (both senior associates, Duesseldorf), Valeria Enrich (partner, Barcelona)
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