CELEX: 32018M9089
Language: en
Date: 2018-10-12 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 12/10/2018 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.9089 - Hellman & Friedman LLC. / Concardis Payment Group GmbH) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels, 12.10.2018
                                                                C(2018) 6855 final
                                                                       PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                 To the notifying party:
Dear Sirs,
Subject:        Case M.9089 - HELLMAN & FRIEDMAN / CONCARDIS PAYMENT
                GROUP
                Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC)
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                No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area
1.      On 20 September 2018, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which Hellman &
        Friedman LLC ("Hellman & Friedman", USA) acquires, within the meaning of Article
        3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation, sole control of the whole of Concardis Payment Group
        GmbH ("Concardis", Germany). The concentration is accomplished by way of purchase of
        shares.3
2.      The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:
             for Hellman & Friedman: private equity investment through funds controlling several
              portfolio companies in a variety of economic sectors, including notably Nets, active in
              the provision of payments, cards, and information services in Denmark, Norway,
              Sweden, Finland, Estonia, and Poland,
             for Concardis: merchant acquiring services in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
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(c) 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 347, 28. 9. 2018, p. 18
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
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