New Frontiers In Merger Control: Innovation, Strategy And Regulation
- IJLLR Journal
- Mar 29
- 1 min read
Kaustubh Tripathi & Pulkit Verma, ILC, Faculty of Law, University of Delhi
I. ABSTRACT
Merger control has been embedded in the traditional framework of mergers and acquisitions, where size and market share thresholds determined the regulatory standards, for a long time. However, today, corporate strategies such as the minority shareholdings, staggered acquisitions, digital platform alliances, and complex holding structures are redefining competitive landscapes without provoking conventional scrutiny. This article explores these new frontiers in merger control, existing in the evolving Indian and global antitrust landscape. It analyses how innovation-driven markets, data- centric economies, and cross-border investment flows create lacunas in existing law. Taking comparative trends from the European Union, United States and leading Indian cases, it highlights how deal value thresholds, ex- ante filings, and dynamic market assessments can fill these loopholes. Beyond descriptive analysis, the paper advances reform proposals—ranging from modernized definitions of “control” to proactive market-power tests— that aim to power arm the competition law to deal with twenty-first-century corporate strategies. By integrating legal theory, economic reasoning and policy critique, the article illustrates that innovation and competition evolve together, safeguarding consumer welfare and market fairness.
