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South Korea says 2025 merger filings fell, but deal values surge

( February 4, 2026, 03:00 GMT | Official Statement) -- MLex Summary: South Korea’s competition regulator said it reviewed 590 merger filings in 2025, down 26.1 percent from 2024, but said the total value of reported transactions jumped about 30 percent to 358.3 trillion won ($247.1 billion) as fewer, larger deals dominated. The Korea Fair Trade Commission attributed the drop in case volume partly to heightened global uncertainty and, more structurally, to expanded filing exemptions that took effect in August 2024, while pointing to large foreign-to-foreign deals as key drivers of the value surge. The regulator said foreign acquirers accounted for 85.4 percent of total deal value, while it conducted 50 in-depth reviews and imposed remedies in three cases including Synopsys–Ansys, Tving–Wavve and the Gmarket–AliExpress joint venture. It also flagged a rising focus on AI-driven combinations and said it will sharpen review tools for “new type” transactions such as "acqui-hires," alongside tighter monitoring of remedy compliance. Statements are attached (in Korean)....

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