The European Commission’s latest Competition Merger Brief of October 2025 discusses the Broadcom/VMware merger, following the publication of the Decision on 13 May 2025.
This case presented numerous conceptual challenges, notably the differing outcomes of the competitive assessments across 12 jurisdictions. While Broadcom was required to propose a remedy to secure a clearance in the EU, China and South Korea, authorities such as the US FTC and UK CMA cleared the merger unconditionally, despite all agencies agreeing that the relevant markets were global.
This is a surprising outcome, particularly from the parties’ perspective, that significantly increases the uncertainty related to cross-border transactions. CRA’s Dr Dan Donath, Michael Muehlbradt and Dr Uğur Akgün explore how merging firms may minimize the risks of different conclusions across jurisdictions.
Read more about navigating foreclosure theories across different jurisdictions here.
