ARGENTINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Agustin Ferrari, Hernán Alal and Astrid Nottebohm, Naveira, Truffat, Martínez, Ferrari & Mallo Abogados
is lower than in other jurisdictions, and it is not the most common method used for acquisitions. 2.2 Primary Regulators The main regulators and official tools used in M&A activity in Argentina are: • Registros Públicos de Comercio (Public Commerce Registers) used for verifying compliance with the General Companies Law, registering trusts ( fide - icomisos ) and acts performed by companies that are subject to registration according to applicable regulations, and specifically the transfer of social quotas, interest shares, or shares in limited liability companies, general partnerships, simple limited partnerships, capital and industry partnerships, and partnerships limited by shares. • Comisión Nacional de Valores y Mercados (National Securities and Markets Commission) – responsible for overseeing compliance with General Compa - nies Law, Capital Markets Law, and applicable regulations by companies that publicly offer shares or securities. • Comisión Nacional de Defensa de la Competen - cia (National Competition Defence Commission) responsible for enforcing Competition Defence Law and merger control. • Agencia de Recaudación y Control Aduanero, or ARCA (Revenue and Customs Control Agency) – the federal tax authority of Argentina. • BCRA (Central Bank of Argentina) – responsible for regulating financial entities, including merger control of such entities. 2.3 Restrictions on Foreign Investments Foreign investors are on equal footing with locals in Argentina except for within some sectors with specific restrictions (media, aviation and ownership of certain pieces of land). Generally, to become a shareholder of an Argentine company, foreign companies must register with the competent Public Registry of Commerce and with the tax authorities. If a foreign company develops its busi - ness on a regular basis in Argentina it must either: i) register a branch there; or ii) set up a local subsidi - ary by registering its shareholders with the competent Public Registry of Commerce.
Specific restrictions are as follows. Media
Foreign ownership of media outlet companies (news - papers, journals, magazines, radio, audiovisual and digital producer publishing, internet providers and on- street advertising) is capped at 30% of capital stock and capital stock with voting rights, except for owner - ship of foreign investors from countries with reciproc - ity agreements. This restriction may be soon recon - sidered, as the Minister of Deregulation and State Transformation of Argentina, Federico Sturzenegger, sent a draft bill to Congress in October of 2024 that included the proposed repeal of the cap for foreigners. A general ban on foreign investment in broadcast - ing media precludes foreign investors from obtain - ing licensees of broadcasting services or participat - ing as shareholders of licensee companies holding broadcasting service licences. This restriction does not apply to foreign investors from countries with international agreements with Argentina with national treatment or “most favoured nation” clauses. Aviation Argentina continues to implement an “open skies” policy aimed at increasing competition and operation - al flexibility in the aviation sector. Foreign investment in companies providing domestic air transportation services is permitted, subject to governmental author - isation, compliance with aviation safety standards and reciprocity principles with the country of origin of the foreign capital. Certain nationality requirements remain in place, including that the president of the company must be an Argentine national and that at least two-thirds of the members of the managing body must be Argentine nationals. In line with this policy, the regulatory framework has been progressively simplified. In 2025, the govern - ment introduced additional deregulation measures through amendments to the Argentine Civil Avia - tion Regulations (including Parts 91, 121 and 135), aimed at simplifying flight procedures, facilitating new operators’ entry and expanding operational flexibility while maintaining safety standards. In addition, recent measures have streamlined reporting requirements for domestic flights and allowed airlines, subject to safety
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