Darkness at the edge of the market town: redrawing the map for mergers and acquisitions in the financial services sector

Banking and insurance undertakings perform a quasi social function within a society. Thus, especially in this sector of the economy, consolidation should be carefully scrutinised with a vew to limiting possible detrimental consequences vis-a-vis consumers. In the last decade, banks and insurers have been allowed to merge on numerous occasions across Europe, leading to a scenario which now denotes a remarkable degree of consolidation (and this situation has been further exacerbated by the global financial crisis). The aim of this article is to critically analyse the application of the EU Merger Regulation to the financial services sector in the quest for the ideal legal approach to mergers and acquisitions in this area of law