Argentina: Introduced Law of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentina including Merger Control Regulation

On 27 December 2023, the Law of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentina was introduced into the Congress of Argentina, which includes a proposal to amend the Act on the Defence of Competition. The proposed law includes an increase in notification thresholds for economic concentrations and the adoption of an ex-ante or suspensive concentration control regime. The threshold for mandatory notification is considered to be the acquisition of significant influence when the combined turnover of the companies involved exceeds 500 million mobile units in the country. The law allows voluntary notification of concentrations that do not meet the notification thresholds, and the new competition authority can review such concentrations ex officio. The law is expected to be discussed during the extraordinary sessions until 31 January 2024.