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On 2 December 2015, Myanmar President Thein Sein issued Notification No 69/2015, declaring that Myanmar's Competition Law ("Competition Law") will come into force on 24 February 2017, exactly two years after the Competition Law was enacted.
Under the Competition Law, there are four types of restricted anti-competitive behaviour: i) acts restricting competition; ii) acts resulting in monopolies; iii) unfair competitive acts; and iv) business combinations such as mergers which lead to market dominance, reducing competition in a market with few players or exceeding a prescribed market share threshold. The Competition Law also provides for the establishment of a Competition Commission as the regulatory enforcement body and any infringement under the Competition Law can attract monetary as well as criminal penalties.
Although the new 2017 effective date lends greater certainty to Myanmar's competition regime, there is still much to be done in the lead-up. For instance, the Competition Law does not appear to distinguish between horizontal and vertical agreements, nor does the law address the concept of "relevant market"; a key concept in most competition regimes. It is also unclear how this cross-sector competition regime will interact with the sector-specific competition regimes in areas such as banking, given that there are no specific exclusions. In addition, the threshold for dominance will only be prescribed later by the Competition Commission. It is hoped that such gaps will be addressed in detail in future by way of implementing regulations to the Competition Law, which should ideally be enacted before the Competition Law comes into effect.
Please note that whilst the information in this Update is correct to the best of our knowledge and belief at the time of writing, it is only
intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter and should not be treated as a substitute for specific professional advice.
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Rajah & Tann
Myanmar Company Limited
Room No. 408(A), Prime Hill Business Square, No. 60,
Shwe Dagon Pagoda Road, Dagon Township,
Yangon, Myanmar
http://mm.rajahtannasia.com
Contacts: Chester TohDirectorD +65 62320220chester.toh@rajahtann.comJainil Bhandari DirectorD +65 62320601jainil.bhandari@rajahtann.com| Rajah & Tann Asia is a network of legal practices based in Asia. |
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