Matthew Readings is Global Antitrust Practice Group Leader and Head of the London and Brussels Offices. He splits his time between London and Brussels and focuses on EU and UK competition law, including transactional and behavioral/contentious work, and on UK, European and other non-US foreign investment regimes.

Matthew advises a broad range of clients on strategic merger control and foreign investment approval issues, represents clients before the European Commission and the CMA, oversees multi-jurisdictional merger reviews in countries throughout the world and has handled complex European Commission and CMA cases, including Phase II investigations and remedy cases, as well as sensitive foreign investment screenings.  He also advises on cartel investigations by the European Commission and UK cartel investigations and market studies/investigations by the CMA and sector regulators such as the FCA. He is experienced in private enforcement of antitrust rights in the UK courts.

Matthew is recommended in the principal legal directories.

Merger Clearance Cases

• Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited in connection with the pending sale of its Crum & Forster Pet Insurance Group and Pethealth Inc. to JAB Holding Company for $1.4 billion. As part of the transaction, Fairfax will also make a $200 million investment in JCP V, JAB’s latest consumer fund
• ADNOC on its acquisition of a 25% shareholding in Borealis AG from Mubadala Investment Company
• PSA International on the global competition and FDI aspects of its acquisition of global logistics solutions provider BDP International
• Chevron on its acquisition of Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (REG)
• Glatfelter on its acquisitions of Jacob Holm and Georgia-Pacific’s European nonwoven business
• Lanxess on its $1.075 billion acquisition of Emerald Kalama Chemical
• Hitachi on its $9.5 billion acquisition of GlobalLogic Inc.
• SAP on the disposal of Digital Interconnect to Sinch AB
• Raytheon on the global merger control and FDI aspects of its $120 billion defence merger with United Technologies
• Barry Callebaut on the Phase I clearance from the UK CMA in respect of its acquisition of Burton’s Biscuit Company’s chocolate manufacturing assets
• ICE on its joint venture with ADNOC to develop and operate a new Recognised Investment Exchange in the Abu Dhabi Global Market; on the UK CMA Phase II investigation of its acquisition of Trayport, and subsequent court appeals; on its $8.2 billion acquisition of NYSE Euronext, cleared unconditionally by the European Commission; and on its OFT clearance for acquiring a majority stake in APEX-Endex
• Macquarie Infrastructure on the merger control aspects of the disposal of its 36% stake in Brussels Airport to a consortium of pension funds
• ADNOC on the establishment of a strategic partnership with OCI for the production of nitrogen fertilizers
• Glatfelter on its acquisition from Georgia-Pacific of its European nonwoven business
• A third party complainant in the European Commission’s review (and prohibition) of Deutsche Börse’s attempted acquisition of the London Stock Exchange Group
• Aditya Birla on its European Commission clearance for its acquisition of Columbian Chemicals following an Article 22 referral by the German, UK and Spanish competition authorities
• Barry Callebaut on its European Commission clearance for its acquisition of the Cocoa Ingredients Division of Petra Foods Limited
• Nokia on its acquisition of Navteq, cleared unconditionally by the European Commission after a Phase II investigation
• A third party on the European Commission’s review of the Deutsche Börse’s attempted acquisition of NYSE Euronext
• A third party on the European Commission’s review of BHP’s proposed acquisition of Rio Tinto
• General Healthcare Group on its acquisition of Nuffield hospitals, cleared by the UK OFT based on a “fix it first” divestment (the first time the OFT accepted a “fix-it-first” remedy)
• A third party on the European Commission’s review of Oracle’s acquisition of Sun Microsystems
• Sybase on its acquisition by SAP

Behavioural/Contentious Cases

• Financial institutions in ongoing European Commission cartel investigations in the financial sector
• A financial institution in an ongoing FCA investigation into benchmark administration
• Credit Suisse re a settlement with the European Commission in the CHF LIBOR cartel case
• Citi in the FCA’s competition market study into wholesale and investment banking
• ICE Clear Europe on the European Commission’s investigation into Credit Default Swaps
• A pharmaceutical company in relation to the European Commission’s pharma sector inquiry
• The Bavarian Lager Company on its action before the General Court and European Court of Justice against a European Commission decision regarding freedom of information/transparency
• Areva in the cartel damages action brought by National Grid in the English High Court against Areva and a number of other defendants
• Cargolux in the cartel damages action brought in the UK based on the European Commission’s air freight cartel decision
• Schering-Plough’s animal health division on the Competition Commission’s market investigation into the supply of prescription-only medicines
• The UK Office of Rail Regulation on its market study into rolling stock leasing companies which led to a market reference to the Competition Commission
• A pharmaceutical company on European Commission dawn raids in the French generics market
• Renault on the Competition Commission’s market investigation into the supply of new cars
• Trinity Mirror on the Competition Commission’s market investigation into classified directory advertising services

Professional Affiliations

• Ranked by Legal 500 and Chambers guides
• Featured in Legal 500 Competition Law
• Oxford University Visiting Professor, Competition Law (Undergraduate Level)