Bulgarian regulator says Hystead buy of The Mall owner outside its scope

In July, Hystead Limited said it has reached an agreement to acquire AP Retail I for a total of 156 million euro.

The deal does not fulfil the minimum conditions concerning the two companies’ turnover in the country to require clearance from the Commission for Protection of Competition said in a statement on Wednesday, the regulator said in a statement.

Under Bulgarian competition law, concentration is subject to mandatory prior notification to the competition authority when the combined turnover of all companies participating in the concentration in Bulgaria in the preceding financial year exceeds 25 million levs ($13.9 million/12.8 million euro).

The concentration must also fulfil one of the following two conditions: either the turnover in Bulgaria of each of at least two of the undertakings participating in the concentration during the preceding financial year should exceed 3 million levs, or the turnover in Bulgaria of the undertaking – subject to acquisition should exceed 3 million levs during the preceding fiscal year.

Located in Sofia, The Mall covers 52,000 sq m, 99.7% of which occupied by the nearly 200 tenants.

(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)