CCP approves acquisition of Claforan trademarks by Hoechst Pak Ltd

ISLAMABAD: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) Friday approved the acquisition of trademarks for the pharmaceutical product Claforan by Hoechst Pakistan Limited from Sanofi Aventis Deutschland GMBH through a Trademark Assignment Agreement.

Hoechst Pakistan Limited, a public listed company in Pakistan, specializes in the manufacture, sale, and trading of pharmaceutical products. Sanofi Aventis Deutschland GMBH, a German-based limited liability company, is a prominent pharmaceutical manufacturer and distributor across Europe. With this transaction, Sanofi is transferring Claforan’s trademarks to Hoechst, positioning Hoechst as a key player in Pakistan’s pharmaceutical industry.

CCP’s assessment identified the relevant market as “Systemic Antibiotics” and classified the transaction as a horizontal merger. Hoechst Pakistan’s market share will remain stable, as it has already been producing Claforan under license from Sanofi Aventis. This acquisition, therefore, will not alter the market balance but will strategically enhance Hoechst’s position.

The CCP concluded that the acquisition would not lead to market dominance and authorized the transaction under Section 31(1)(d)(i) of the Competition Act.

The relevant product market, in this case has been identified as “Systemic Antibiotics” (Claforan) while the relevant geographic market is “Pakistan”.

The Acquirer and Seller are both active in the same therapeutic class with a different brand name making it a horizontal merger. The total estimated market share of the Acquirer is 1.12 percent which will remain unchanged post-transaction as the Acquirer is currently manufacturing the product under the license from the Seller.

The proposed transaction will not result in dominance of the Acquirer in the relevant market, post-transaction, as determined under Section 2(1)(e) read with Section 3 of the Act. Therefore, the said transaction is hereby authorized under Section 31(1)(d)(i) of the Act.

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