The European Commission reported on Tuesday that UBS has received provisional approval from EU antitrust regulators to finalize its purchase of Credit Suisse. However, UBS will still need to seek clearance under EU merger regulations.
Last month, UBS facilitated a merger with Credit Suisse with the support of the Swiss authorities.
Under European Union merger regulations, companies are required to obtain EU antitrust approval before finalizing deals or risk facing fines of up to 10% of their combined turnover.
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The EU antitrust enforcer said the Swiss banks had asked for an exemption from this standstill obligation.
“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.”
