On April 30, 2026, the European Commission published a long-awaited draft of updated Merger Guidelines. Stakeholders have until June 26 to provide their feedback via an online survey. The Commission’s dedicated page on this initiative provides further details. The revamp of the guidelines is an attempt to reflect what the Commission has learned since the existing Horizontal Merger Guidelines (2004) and Non-Horizontal Merger Guidelines (2008) were put in place and to update merger control practice to encompass current geopolitical realities and EU strategic priorities. The underlying objective of the consultation draft is clear: to facilitate the growth of EU companies, […]
Details
Gecić Law is proud to announce that it served as lead legal advisor to Telekom Srbija Group in a landmark telecommunications transaction in the Western Balkans. Telekom Srbija Group has agreed to acquire NetTV Plus, DTH in Serbia/North Macedonia and Western Balkans Sport Klub rights licenses from United Group. The acquisition is part of a broader deal with a combined enterprise value of €1.5 billion, representing one of the largest telecom sector transactions in the region’s history. As part of the broader transaction, e& PPF Telecom—majority-owned by e& and Czech Group PPF—will acquire SBB and integrate it with Yettel. This […]
Details
We are pleased to announce that Gecić Law’s competition law team has contributed to the prestigious Legal 500 Merger Control Guide for 2024. The renowned annual publication offers comprehensive analyses of merger control regulations and practices in jurisdictions worldwide. This year’s edition, published in collaboration with a contributing editor from Clifford Chance, covers 25 countries. Gecić Law’s experts provided in-depth insights into four crucial regional markets. This includes Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Their input indeed provides detailed overviews of the merger control regimes in each country. The guides also highlight crucial procedural aspects, enforcement trends, and […]
Details
We are excited to share the outstanding achievements of Bogdan Gecić, the Founding Partner of Gecić Law, in the 2024 edition of Who’s Who Legal, a highly respected guide to the world’s top legal practitioners. This year, Bogdan earned recognition as a Thought Leader and was featured in three reports across two highly competitive practice areas: M&A and Governance and Competition. This prestigious recognition, therefore, places him among the select few in the jurisdiction acknowledged across multiple practice groups. This highlights his exceptional legal expertise and strong leadership. Who’s Who Legal – Thought Leader 2024: Bogdan Gecić In this edition […]
Details
Our Partner and Head of Corporate M&A practice Ognjen Colić captured the imaginations of the students of the Faculty of Law in Belgrade yesterday as he delivered an interactive guest lecture focusing on mergers and acquisitions. He gave the students a comprehensive overview of this fascinating field using examples and anecdotes from his rich experience in the field. Ognjen explained the key processes and negotiations that are crucial during a merger or acquisition. Between due diligence, drawing up contracts, and signing and closing, he explained that legal teams must be meticulous and systematic in their approach. As Ognjen said, “Lawyers […]
Details
On July 29, 2020, the Slovenian Supreme Court (“Court“) reached a decision by which it ordered that the Slovenian Competition Protection Agency (“AVK“) shall restore the Croatian Agrokor d.d.’s shares in the Slovenian retailer Mercator. In its press release, the AVK stated that the decision by which it ordered the withdrawal of shares held by Agrokor was rendered in accordance with Article 201 of the Slovenian Misdemeanor Act (Zakon o prekrških) in 2019. Article 201 enshrines that anyone’s property may be confiscated in cases there is likelihood of the perpetrator hiding or fleeing the country during the procedure before the […]
Details
The public debate on the Draft of Amendments of the Companies Act, suggested and prepared by the Ministry of Economy in April, will take place in Belgrade on 4th October 2017. As part of the drafting procedure, the Ministry tried to identify and address business sector`s concerns regarding the Companies Act and identify areas where amendments to current regulatory framework might be needed. In order to facilitate the above-mentioned, the working group also included representatives of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, with more than 60% of the comments submitted by the companies to the Ministry, being adopted. […]
Details
This update considers how exchange of information, as an essential part of any M&A transaction (from pre-acquisition discussions, through the due diligence procedure, and up to the closing of the transaction), may cause significant competition concerns under the Serbian Competition Act in terms of potential collusion between competitors. The prohibition on entering into restrictive agreements under the current Serbian Competition Act (CA) applies, as a general rule, to sharing of commercially sensitive information between undertakings. Relevant provisions of the CA prohibit contracts, certain contract provisions, express or tacit agreements, concerted practices, as well as decisions of undertakings associations which have […]
Details
The Serbian 2009 Protection of Competition Act (as amended in 2013) (the Act) provides for rather low merger control thresholds, compared both to EU law and countries in the region. Thresholds set this low can (and usually do) result in excessive merger control which eventually brings more harm than good to market competition. In order to put an end to this, a change in decisional practice and/or legislative change in regards to this important aspect of merger control is required. The Act provides for rather low merger control thresholds, compared both to EU law and countries in the region. Namely, […]
Details
Gecić | Law advised Železara Smederevo and the Government of Serbia on EU, regulatory and corporate matters in connection with the €46 million ($52 million) sale of assets of Železara Smederevo’s through a public tender procedure to the Chinese company Hebei Iron and Steel Company Limited (HBIS). Under the transaction, HBIS pledged to invest at least $300 million in a new company and to utilize the acquired assets to develop its global layout and to provide better service for its customers in Europe. Leading Serbian Steel Manufacturer Železara Smederevo is Serbia’s leading producer of steel and is the second-largest Serbian […]
Details