CELEX: 32020M9991
Language: en
Date: 2020-11-19 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 19/11/2020 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.9991 - MASSMUTUAL / MVC CAPITAL) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels, 19.11.2020
                                                                C(2020) 8223 final
                                                                                 PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                To the notifying party
Subject:        Case M.9991 — MassMutual/MVC Capital
                Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation
                                       1
                (EC) No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European
                                    2
                Economic Area
Dear Sir or Madam,
1.      On 27 October 2020, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which Barings BDC,
        Inc. (“Barings BDC”, USA), advised by Barings LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of
        Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (“MassMutual”, USA), acquires
        within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation control over the whole
        of the undertaking MVC Capital, Inc. (“MVC Capital”, USA) by way of purchase of
        shares.3
2.      The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:
          —        Barings BDC is a closed-end, non-diversified investment company. It
                   provides capital to middle-market businesses that operate across a wide range
                   of industries and generates income primarily from directly-originated debt
                   investments. Barings BDC is advised by Barings LLC, an international
                   investment management firm, which in turn is wholly owned by
                   MassMutual, a mutual life insurance company,
          —        MVC Capital is an externally managed, non-diversified closed-end
                   management investment company. It provides equity and debt investment
                   capital to fund growth, acquisitions and recapitalizations of small and
                   middle-market companies in a variety of industries.
3.      After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that
        the notified operation falls within the scope of the Merger Regulation and of
1       OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the ‘Merger Regulation’). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on
        the Functioning of the European Union (‘TFEU’) has introduced certain changes, such as the
        replacement of ‘Community’ by ‘Union’ and ‘common market’ by ‘internal market’. The terminology
        of the TFEU will be used throughout this decision.
2       OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 (the ‘EEA Agreement’).
3       Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 372, 04.11.2020, p. 16.
Commission européenne, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Bruxelles, BELGIQUE
Europese Commissie, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Brussel, BELGIË
Tel: +32 229-91111. Fax: +32 229-64301. E-mail: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu.
 ---pagebreak---    paragraph 5(c) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of
   certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.4
4. For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European
   Commission has decided not to oppose the notified operation and to declare it
   compatible with the internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is
   adopted in application of Article 6(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation and Article 57 of
   the EEA Agreement.
                                                  For the Commission
                                                  (Signed)
                                                  Olivier GUERSENT
                                                  Director-General
4  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.
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