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EU Antitrust Chief Faces Pressure Over Merger Policy Uncertainty

By  |  September 14, 2025
EU economics David S Evans

Brussels – The European Union’s top competition official, Teresa Ribera, is coming under growing pressure to outline her vision for merger regulation, as businesses and policymakers wait for clarity on what could mark the most significant shake-up of EU competition rules in decades. According to The Financial Times, frustration is mounting among officials and dealmakers, who say the lack of clear signals is delaying investment decisions.

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    Ribera, a Spanish socialist who took over the EU’s antitrust portfolio nine months ago, was tasked with modernizing merger controls to help create “European champions.” However, she has yet to indicate whether she will depart meaningfully from the EU’s traditional antitrust approach. Per The Financial Timess, the uncertainty has already strained relations with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen’s team, which is pushing for industrial policy reforms to help Europe close the gap with the US and China.

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    Industry lawyers and executives say the lack of clarity is weighing on corporate planning. One lawyer advising companies on deals told the paper that “patience is running thin on the lack of clarity,” while another warned that business leaders lack the tolerance for Brussels’ slow pace. Ribera, speaking at a conference in Florence, acknowledged the impatience but stressed that reforms required thorough consultation. She said she would move “as fast as possible” but also needed to ensure a “proper assessment.”

    Read more: EU Commission Fines Eurofield and Unanime Sport for Incomplete Information in Antitrust Probe

    Her arrival raised expectations that Brussels would adopt a new stance on mergers, especially after former Italian premier Mario Draghi’s report on EU competitiveness called for allowing more consolidation to strengthen Europe’s innovation and technology sectors. Alessandro Gropelli, director-general of the telecom industry group Connect Europe, argued that “lack of scale and market fragmentation” have become major obstacles to European competitiveness.

    Despite these political pressures, Ribera’s antitrust team has so far urged caution. Officials continue to defend existing rules designed to prevent excessive market concentration that could harm consumers, underscoring the challenge she faces in balancing demands for stronger European industry with protections for competition.

    Source: The Financial Times