Press Release: Mergers: European Commission approves acquisition of Hypo Group Alpe Adria by the Republic of Austria

The European Commission has approved under the Merger Regulation the acquisition of the Austrian financial group Hypo Group Alpe Adria ("HGAA") by the Austrian Ministry of Finance.

The Commission concluded that the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition in the European Economic Area (EEA) or any substantial part of it.

This is the second time that the Commission has examined the nationalisation of a bank following the financial crisis under the Merger Regulation. The first case concerned the acquisition of the German financial institution Hypo Real Estate AG by Germany's state-owned Financial Market Stabilisation Fund

ESO: Background information: State aid: Commission prolongs temporary approval of aid to German WestLB and to Austrian Hypo Alpe Adria Group http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-state-aid-commission-prolongs-temporary-approval-of-aid-to-german-westlb-and-to-austrian-hypo-alpe-adria-group/

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