Hong Kong's Communications Authority (CA) has effectively approved the proposed acquisition of New World Telecom by HKBN.
In a statement, the CA said that after carefully considering the details of the acquisition, the CA has decided not to commence an investigation into the proposed deal under Hong Kong's Competition Ordinance.
Because HKBN and New World Telecom are both carrier licensees, the deal fell within the ordinance's merger rule, which posits that companies cannot conduct a merger that would have the effect of substantially lessening competition.
Both HKBN and New World Telecom provide fixed voice and broadband services in Hong Kong.
But the CA's initial evaluation of the merger has led the authority to believe that there will not be a substantial impact on competition within Hong Kong's telecom markets. As a result of this evaluation the regulator said it has decided not to commence and investigation.
HKBN announced in February that it has entered into a HK$650 million ($83.8 million) agreement to acquire NWT as part of efforts to increase its presence in the enterprise segment. If the deal goes through the combined company will have more than HK$3 billion in total annual revenue.