Competitive Edge Newsletter: Competition Law - December 2025
Contacts
Partner
Denmark
I'm a partner and co-head of our international Competition & EU group. I also lead the Competition & EU team in Denmark. I have a particular focus on applying competition & EU law as a tool to achieve specific and measurable business objectives for our clients.
Partner
Netherlands
I am a partner in our NL office, based in The Hague, where I was one of its founding lawyers in 2001.
Keeping you up to date on Competition & EU law developments in Europe and beyond.
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In Focus
Procurement under scrutiny: Bidder exclusion as a growing weapon against anticompetitive practices
Read the article by Candela Sotés, Pablo Rodríguez Sousa and Álvaro López de Ochoa García to understand how bidder exclusion is reshaping the competitive landscape and why your procurement compliance programmes may need urgent review.
Updates from our jurisdictions
EU
EU Institutions Reach Political Agreement on New Foreign Direct Investment Screening Regulation
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Baptist Vleeshouwers or Tialda Beetstra.
Czech Republic
Czech NCA launches sector inquiry into mobile telecommunications services
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Vojtěch Chloupek, Kristýna Vojtěchovská, or Matej Šinkovic.
Denmark
Trade associations under scrutiny: What the new DCCA guidance means for you
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Morten Nissen or Alexander Brøchner.
Finland
Finnish airline proposed to face fine of EUR 7.6 million for procedural competition law infringement
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Katia Duncker, Petteri Metsä-Tokila or Maria Karpathakis.
Germany
Below-Threshold Transactions: First-ever notification obligation for future deals imposed on Rethmann Group
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Stephan Waldheim or Tamy Tietze.
Hungary
GVH can now restructure markets without infringement findings – Who should worry?
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Dániel Arányi and Gabor Kutai.
Italy
The Administrative Court of Appeal has confirmed the AGCM's decision regarding Google's abuse of a dominant position
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Federico Marini Balestra, Lucia Antonazzi and Jacopo Orsi.
Netherlands
Beware of bid rigging – Dutch competition authority dawn raids three construction companies!
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Janneke Kohlen or Sander Wagemakers.
Update on Dutch call-in power: ACM responds to critical remarks by the Council of State
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Pauline Kuipers or Tialda Beetstra.
Poland
Poland updates leniency rules: UOKiK issues new guidelines
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Marcin Alberski or Stanislaw Szymanek.
Spain
When do information exchanges affect competition? Lessons from the tobacco cartel in Spain regarding Hub-and-Spoke practices
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Candela Sotés or Pablo Rodríguez.
UK
CMA Launches Major Consumer Enforcement Drive Focused On Online Pricing Practices
If you need more information or further guidance in this area, please contact Dr Saskia King, Ariane Le Strat, Shona O'Connell or Amy Cole.
Podcast, events and webinars
Competitive Edge – The Podcast
In our latest podcast episode exploring REMIT – the Regulation on Wholesale Energy Market Integrity and Transparency, Louis Breen (paralegal, UK), Tialda Beetstra (senior associate, Netherlands) and Clara Desprez (associate, UK) discuss:
- Key REMIT prohibitions on insider trading and market manipulation, and obligations on publishing inside information and reporting transaction data
- How REMIT intersects with competition law to address market manipulation in energy markets
- Key changes introduced by REMIT II in 2024, including enhanced investigative powers for ACER
- Recent enforcement trends and practical insights for compliance in wholesale energy markets
This episode provides essential insights for businesses operating in wholesale energy markets.
If you have any questions or need clarifications, please feel free to contact the speakers
Key Takeaways from recent webinar
UK Merger Control Update
On 13 November, our London competition team hosted a webinar on the significant changes to UK merger control following the Digital Markets Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA). Speakers Dr Saskia King, Ariane Le Strat, and Emma Bermingham, who have all previously worked at the UK Competition and Markets Authority, CMA, were joined by guest panellist Cristina Caballero Candelario, Principal at Fingleton and former Assistant Director of Mergers at the CMA.
The session covered the CMA's new jurisdictional tests, enhanced enforcement powers, the 4Ps framework (Pace, Predictability, Proportionality and Process), and practical guidance for deal teams navigating the new regime.
Read the Key Takeaways from the webinar
Key Takeaways from recent webinar
Navigating the New Era of FDI Screening – Sensitive Sectors and Cross-Border Deals
If you missed our webinar on 25 November, you can read the key takeaways prepared by our panel of FDI experts across the EU and the UK. Using two case studies, Anthony Rosen, Baptist Vleeshouwers, Tialda Beetstra, Jacopo Nardelli, Tenisha Cramer, Maria Karpathakis and Tamy Tietze provided their insights on navigating the new FDI screening landscape – and what it means for your cross-border deals.
This session was designed for in-house counsel, M&A and private equity deal teams, as well as investment funds and companies active in sensitive sectors.
Informa CompLaw conference
Consumer Protection Forum
12 February 2026 | London, UK
Our London-based partner Dr Saskia King has been invited to chair Informa's inaugural Consumer Protection Forum. The event examines the UK Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) strengthened consumer protection powers and how businesses should respond to increased enforcement around drip-pricing, fake reviews, subscription practices and other emerging issues. The forum brings together the CMA, in-house counsel and enforcement specialists to discuss practical compliance strategies and risk management in the evolving UK regulatory landscape.
More information and registration
Get a 20% VIP discount when registering via this link
Bird & Bird news
We're proud to have been recommended in 9 jurisdictions this year by the Global Competition Review GCR 100: Australia, Brussels, Denmark, Finland, France, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, and the UK.
Recognition in Chambers APAC 2026 guide
Latest insights
More Insights
EU: Advertising in the Automotive Sector -Harmonisation of consumption and emission values
8 minutes Jan 06 2026
Italy: The Administrative Court of Appeal has confirmed the AGCM's decision regarding Google's abuse of a dominant position
4 minutes Dec 16 2025
Update on Dutch call-in power: ACM responds to critical remarks by the Council of State
4 minutes Dec 15 2025