CELEX: 32019M9373
Language: en
Date: 2019-06-19 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 19/06/2019 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.9373 - PAI Partners S.A.S / Areas Worldwide S.A) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels, 19.6.2019
                                                                C(2019) 4612 final
                                                                                 PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                To the notifying party
Subject:        Case M.9373 -PAI PARTNERS / AREAS WORLDWIDE
                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 17 May 2019, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which the
        undertaking PAI Europe VII funds (Luxembourg), belonging to the group of PAI
        Partners S.A.S. (‘PAI Partners’, France), acquires within the meaning of Article
        3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation sole control of the whole of Areas Worldwide S.A.
        (France) by way of purchase of shares.3
2.      The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:
              for PAI Partners: a private equity company that manages and advises a number
                 of funds that own companies active in a variety of business sectors, such as
                 business services, food and consumer, general industries, healthcare, and retail
                 and distribution,
              for Areas Worldwide: management of travel concession catering, mainly in
                 motorways, airports and railway stations.
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
        paragraph 5(b) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of
        certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.4
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 181, 27.05.2019, p. 10.
4       OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.
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--- 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)
                                                  Johannes LAITENBERGER
                                                  Director-General
                                              2