2026 marks the year of implementation and strategic recalibration for many of the regulatory projects initiated under the previous Commission. Key regulations shift from concept to enforcement and transition to practical compliance obligations for the consumer goods and retail industry: Under the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, sustainability and transparency requirements will become binding, and the Empowering Consumers Directive imposes stricter standards on packaging design and environmental claims.

Navigating expanding regulatory frontiers

The deal-making landscape is changing fast and not in ways that make life easier for businesses and their advisors. In merger control, regulators are actively exploring ways to move beyond the traditional revenue thresholds that have long defined their jurisdiction. Across Europe, the concept of call-in regimes and post-closing reviews is gaining traction. This means that even transactions involving targets without significant market presence could, in future, be drawn into review where strategic concerns arise.

Yesterday, the German Federal Cartel Office (FCO) ordered Amazon to end price caps on third-party sellers on its German marketplace and to surrender or “disgorge” the economic benefits it obtained from its anticompetitive conduct (“Vorteilsabschöpfung”). The FCO took issue with Amazon’s price controlling practice and found it to amount to an abuse of dominance. In a first tranche, Amazon was ordered to disgorge almost EUR 59 million. This is the first time the regulator has used its newly strengthened powers to seize benefits resulting from an alleged antitrust infringement. Amazon has already announced that it will appeal the decision.

On 9 January 2026, the European Commission (EC) published Guidelines on the Foreign Subsidies Regulation. The Guidelines provide additional clarity surrounding the application of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR), particularly with regard to (i) the assessment of distortion, (ii) the balancing test, and (iii) the EC’s powers to “call in” (i.e., request prior notification of) below-threshold M&A transactions or bids in public procurement procedures. This briefing aims to illuminate the new standards introduced by the Guidelines in order to help navigate the still nebulous regulatory landscape under the FSR.

Across Europe competition authorities are increasingly targeting M&A transactions that fall below traditional turnover thresholds. The European Commission (EC) and several National Competition Authorities (NCAs) are expanding their toolkits through call-in powers, post-closing antitrust enforcement and expansive interpretations of existing frameworks to close the gap around below-threshold deals in fear of missing out on so-called killer or roll-up acquisitions. While killer acquisitions mean large established market players buying nascent competitors to eliminate future competition, roll-up acquisitions refer to a company systematically taking over small competitors to achieve consolidation of a fragmented market.

BLOMSTEIN starts the New Year with three celebrations: Elisa Theresa Hauch is promoted to the Antitrust Partnership; Konstantin Kuhle, former Member of the German Bundestag, joins as Special Counsel, and Bruno Galvão is appointed Counsel.

The recent “Nexperia crisis” sparked an initiative by the German Automotive Industry Association (VDA) which created a platform enabling carmakers and suppliers to offer and request leftover semiconductor stock. The platform is supposed to mitigate acute chip shortages (notably involving components from Nexperia), which threatens vehicle production in Germany, by effectively connecting players across the industry and efficiently matching supply and demand. The Federal Cartel Office (FCO) gave his blessing with President Andreas Mundt stating that the information exchange implied could improve the allocation of scarce chips and help delay production cuts, ultimately benefiting both the industry and consumers. The VDA semiconductor platform follows a pattern of industry-led digital trading platforms that have sought and received antitrust approval in Germany. This case is interesting as the FCO continues to show its openness for innovative platforms that improve market efficiency, provided certain reliable safeguards are built-in to prevent anti-competitive information exchanges.

BLOMSTEIN is becoming (even) more international: On 1 October 2025, we are expanding our European presence and will open an office in Brussels. With BLOMSTEIN already being strongly connected across Europe and globally, the new Brussels office marks the natural next step in our international footprint and strengthens our proximity to European institutions. 

BLOMSTEIN advised Opta Group LP, a portfolio company of Speyside Equity Advisors (Speyside), and a leading supplier of performance materials and solutions in the molten metal, infrastructure, and specialty chemical industries, on FDI and merger control aspects relating  the acquisition of the assets of the majority of the business operations of m-tec Group, a company previously operating in Wesel, Germany.

Few corporate nightmares begin as subtly as an external investigation — a knock on the door, a ring of the bell — and within seconds, everything changes. Unannounced inspections are aimed at probing legal infringements. They are highly disruptive and expose companies to serious legal and reputational risks. While most companies are aware of the risk of dawn raids by competition authorities such as the European Commission (Commission) or the German Federal Cartel Office (FCO), they should also be prepared for inspections by other agencies, such as tax and customs authorities, OLAF (European Anti-Fraud Office) or public prosecutors. Each authority operates under its own distinct legal framework and pursues a specific enforcement agenda, ranging from antitrust violations and breaches of customs, tax, or export control laws to criminal offences such as fraud or corruption. What all these investigations have in common: They typically come without a warning and demand an immediate, coordinated and legally sound response. This briefing provides a practical overview of what (not) to do during inspections – offering both general best practices and authority-specific guidelines.