A cross-border team from Baker McKenzie has advised and represented DERTOUR Group in all merger control proceedings related to its acquisition of Hotelplan Group, an international travel group specializing in leisure and business travel. The acquisition enhances DERTOUR Group's presence in Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Germany. The well-established brands of Hotelplan Group will further strengthen DERTOUR Group's tourism portfolio and expertise.
The Baker McKenzie team, led by Dr Nicolas Kredel and Boris Wenger, successfully obtained merger control clearance from the Swiss Competition Commission for DERTOUR Group. The complex Phase II proceedings were concluded without any conditions and obligations. Merger control clearances had already been secured in Germany and Austria. These were the first major merger control proceedings following the restructuring of the travel market due to the insolvency of the provider FTI. Particular attention was given to the growing competition from online travel agents, airlines and hotel chains.
Baker McKenzie's Swiss M&A team, led by Manuel Meyer, advised DERTOUR Group on the underlying M&A transaction.
DERTOUR Group, based in Cologne, is an internationally renowned travel group, employing more than 10,000 people across 16 markets. DERTOUR Group includes brands like DERTOUR, ITS, Meiers Weltreisen and Kuoni, among others. The group operates more than 2,000 travel agencies and belongs to the German REWE Group.
Hotelplan Group, headquartered in Glattbrugg, Switzerland, specializes in leisure and business travel. It employs around 2,500 people at 238 locations and generated sales of CHF 1.78 billion in 2024. Its business divisions include Hotelplan Suisse, the largest tour operator in Switzerland.
Baker McKenzie's antitrust practice group is a full-service antitrust practice with global reach, covering the entire spectrum of antitrust advice. The DACH region team regularly advises on all aspects of EU antitrust law as well as the national regimes in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, including national and international cartel investigations, multinational merger control proceedings and co-operation agreements between competitors as well as market abuse cases.
Legal advisor to DERTOUR Group:
Baker McKenzie
Lead counsel: Antitrust & Competition: Dr Nicolas Kredel (Partner, Düsseldorf), Boris Wenger (Partner, Zurich)
Team: Antitrust & Competition: Roger Thomi (Partner, Zurich), Dr Florian Kotman (Counsel, Düsseldorf), Nina Lenhard (Counsel, Vienna), Markus Mossmann (Associate, Düsseldorf), Dr.Lukas Greiner (Associate, Düsseldorf)
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