CELEX: 32016M7926
Language: en
Date: 2016-02-03 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 03/02/2016 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.7926 - GOLDMAN SACHS / NORTHGATE) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

|[pic]                             |EUROPEAN COMMISSION                                                                                      |

                                        Brussels, 3.2.2016
                                        C(2016) 746 final

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|                                                                       |To the notifying party:                                                |

Dear Sirs,

Subject:    Case M.7926 - GOLDMAN SACHS / NORTHGATE
         Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004[1] and Article 57 of the Agreement on the
         European Economic Area[2]

 1. On 22 December 2015, the European Commission received notification of  a  proposed  concentration  pursuant  to  Article  4  of  the  Merger
    Regulation by which The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ("Goldman Sachs", United  States  of  America)  acquires,  indirectly  through  affiliated
    holding companies, sole control of the whole of Northgate Information Solutions Limited ("Northgate", UK)  within  the  meaning  of  Article
    3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation via a debt to equity swap.[3]

 2. The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

    - for Goldman Sachs: investment banking, securities and investment management;

    - for Northgate: development and provision of integrated software, outsourcing and IT technology solutions and services for payroll  and  HR
         management.

 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 paragraphs 5(c) and 6 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)
                                        Johannes LAITENBERGER
                                        Director-General

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[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 15, 16.1.2016, p.14.

[4]   OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.

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                                                                  PUBLIC VERSION

                                                           SIMPLIFIED MERGER PROCEDURE