SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Lim Chong Kin and Corinne Chew, Drew & Napier LLC
Firstly, efficiencies may be assessed when con - sidering whether the merger is likely to lead to an SLC in the first place. A merger may not result in an SLC where, for example, the efficien - cy gains from the merger of two of the smaller firms in a market allow the merged entity to exert greater competitive pressure on larger competi - tors. Secondly, efficiencies may also be taken into account where they outweigh the adverse effects resulting from the SLC caused by the merger, such that there are net economic effi - ciencies in markets in Singapore. In general, efficiencies must be demonstrable (ie, clear and quantifiable), merger-specific (ie, likely to arise from the merger), timely (ie, the ben - efits will materialise within a reasonable period of time) and sufficient in extent (with reference to the magnitude of the efficiencies). The Commission will compare the economic effi - ciencies with the adverse effects of the SLC (ie, comparing the magnitude of efficiencies against those of the anti-competitive effects from the merger). The merger is likely to be cleared if the Commission considers that the efficiencies outweigh the potential negative effects of the merger. If the Commission considers that the potential negative effects outweigh the eco - nomic efficiencies, it may impose remedies or prohibit the merger. 4.6 Non-Competition Issues The Minister for Trade and Industry (the Minis - ter) has the power to exempt a merger or an anticipated merger on the grounds of any public interest consideration, upon the application of a merger party that has been notified that the Commission proposes to issue an unfavour - able decision in respect of the merger. For the purposes of the Competition Act, “public inter - est consideration” refers to ”national or public
security, defence and such other considera - tions as the Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, prescribe”. As of 9 May 2025, the Minister has not gazetted any other matters as “public interest considerations” under Section 2 of the Competition Act. As mentioned in 1.2 Legislation Relating to Par- ticular Sectors , apart from the SIRA, Singapore does not have general legislation prohibiting or requiring consent for foreign investment or foreign subsidies. However, some sectors and industries have specific requirements on foreign ownership, such as news media, banking, tel - ecommunications and real estate. These regula - tions are separate from the merger control rules under the Competition Act. • The Telecommunications Act 1999 requires a person to obtain the approval of the Info- communications Media Development Author - ity before becoming a 12% controller or a 30% controller, before obtaining effective control over a designated telecommuni - cations licensee, or before acquiring any business (or any part of such business) of a designated telecommunications licensee as a going concern. • The Newspaper and Printing Presses Act 1974 requires the Minister for Digital Devel - opment and Information’s approval before a person can become a substantial shareholder or a 12% controller or indirect controller of a newspaper company, and prohibits persons from entering into agreements to acquire, hold or dispose of interest in voting shares of more than 5% of all voting shares in a news - paper company. • The Broadcasting Act 1994 does not allow a broadcasting company to be granted or to hold a relevant licence where a foreign source holds or is in a position to control more than
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