The field of competition law in general and the area of merger control in particular have received particular attention in recent years in the Russian Federation. Several factors have facilitated this. Most importantly, since the 1990s, the Government has come to place considerable emphasis on the economic development of Russia and to understand that effective competition law and policy is a major key to success. Additionally, the close ties which Russia has been building with the European Union (EU) (most notably the signing of the Partnership and Co-operation Agreement in 1994) have enhanced the role of competition law in the economy. A third facilitating factor to be mentioned is the process of globalisation, which has a direct impact on Russia’s regime of merger control, given the number of merger operations worldwide which have proved capable of affecting domestic markets in Russia and the conditions of competition there. These factors, amongst others, have highlighted the importance of strengthening Russia’s system of competition law in general and its merger control regime in particular. Important legislative and enforcement efforts have been made over the years, though the system still suffers from significant bureaucratic hiccoughs and legislative shortcomings.

Primary legislation

There are several principal instruments of primary legislation governing merger control in Russia. These are as follows: Law of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic No 948–1 of 22 March 1991 on Competition and Limitation of Monopolistic Activity on Commodities Markets, as amended in October 2002 (the ‘Competition Law’); Federal Law No 147-FZ of 17 August 1995 on Natural Monopolies, as amended in January 2003; and Federal Law No 117-FL of 23 June 1999 on the Defence of Competition on Financial Services Markets, as amended in December 2001.