The European Commission announced on Tuesday that UBS has received temporary approval from EU antitrust regulators for its acquisition of troubled competitor Credit Suisse. However, UBS will still need to seek clearance under EU merger rules.
Last month, UBS assisted Credit Suisse with a merger that was planned and funded by the Swiss government.
Under European Union merger regulations, companies must obtain EU antitrust approval before finalizing deals or risk facing fines of up to 10% of their total revenue.
Related: EU OKs UBS’ Credit Suisse Deal
The Swiss banks requested an exemption from the standstill obligation, according to the EU antitrust enforcer.
“Upon request of UBS and Credit Suisse, the Commission has granted a derogation from the standstill obligation on the basis of Article 7(3) of the EU Merger Regulation,” the Commission said in an email to Reuters.“The Commission found that the requirements for a derogation were met and therefore it approved on 4 April 2023 the derogation request subject to conditions.”
