The US District Court for the Southern District of Texas has granted a motion to dismiss the FTC’s lawsuit filed by private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe (WCAS), but denied the motion to dismiss filed by its minority-owned portfolio company, US Anesthesiology Partners, Inc. (USAP). The FTC alleged that WCAS and USAP developed and pursued an anticompetitive acquisition strategy to “roll-up” multiple Texas-based aesthesia practices in violation of federal antitrust law. The court granted WCAS’s motion to dismiss because it found that its minority, non-controlling stake in USAP was insufficient to support a violation of federal antitrust law.

Ahead of the coming into force of the new Egyptian merger control regime on 1st of June 2024, the Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA) today published its new notification form as well as questions and answers providing clarifications to merger parties. The ECA had received feedback that its proposed jurisdictional thresholds were too broad leading to transactions with no impact on the Egyptian market needing to be notified. To address these concerns, the ECA has narrowed down its jurisdictional thresholds, clearly requiring a local nexus for transactions. The ECA has also created a simplified procedure and fast track process for certain transactions.

Telecommunications concessions and authorization holders and other companies that own or use telecommunications or broadcasting infrastructure must provide certain information to the Federal Telecommunications Institute through the National Information and Infrastructure System (Sistema Nacional de Información e Infraestructura (SNII)). The obligation to report such information is effective as of July 2024. The SNII is a database that will contain information on active infrastructure and means of transmission, passive infrastructure, rights of way and public and private sites used by operators providing telecommunications or broadcasting services.

The Electronic Signatures Act of Taiwan, enacted in 2001, has undergone its first major amendment (“Amendment”) in response to the rapid global digital transformation and the changing landscape of digital services and digital economy in Taiwan. With the proliferation of digital solutions and the increasing demand for electronic documents and signatures, particularly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Taiwan Legislative Yuan passed the Amendment on 30 April 2024. The Amendment will take effect following the President’s promulgation.