The European Commission has approved under the EU Merger Regulation the acquisition of Visa Europe of the United Kingdom, by Visa Inc. of the US. Together, the two companies operate the VISA payment scheme. According to an agreement concluded after Visa Inc. and Visa Europe's de-merger in 2007, the companies cannot operate in the same territories. Visa Europe is active in the European Economic Area (EEA) and neighbouring countries while Visa Inc. is active in the rest of the world. As a result, the companies' activities do not overlap and the Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would therefore raise no competition concerns. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure. More information is available on the Commission's competition website, in the public case register under the case number M.7786.
