EUROPEAN COMMISSION DG Competition

Only the English text is available and authentic.

REGULATION (EC) No 139/2004 MERGER PROCEDURE

Article 6(1)(b) NON-OPPOSITION Date: 16/05/2018

In electronic form on the EUR-Lex website under document number 32018M8885

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Brussels, 16.05.2018 C(2018) 3125 final

PUBLIC VERSION

To the notifying party

Dear Sir or Madam,

1.On 13 April 2018, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which Carlyle Asia Partners IV, L.P., belonging to the the Carlyle Group (United States) indirectly acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation sole control of the whole of Accolade Wines Holdings Australia Pty Ltd (Australia) and Accolade Wines Holdings Europe Limited (United Kingdom) (together the 'Accolade Group'), both controlled by funds managed by CHAMP III Management Pty Ltd, by way of purchase of shares.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

- for the Carlyle Group: global alternative asset management,

- for the Accolade Group: production, marketing and sale predominantly at wholesale level of wine and wine products.

1OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the 'Merger Regulation'). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ('TFEU') has introduced certain changes, such as the replacement of 'Community' by 'Union' and 'common market' by 'internal market'. The terminology of the TFEU will be used throughout this decision.

2OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 (the 'EEA Agreement').

3Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 143, 24.4.2018, p. 8.

Commission européenne, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Bruxelles, BELGIQUE Europese Commissie, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Brussel, BELGIË

Tel: +32 229-91111. Fax: +32 229-64301. E-mail: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu.

3.After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that the notified operation falls within the scope of the Merger Regulation and of paragraph 5(b) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.

4.For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European Commission has decided not to oppose the notified operation and to declare it compatible with the internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is adopted in application of Article 6(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation and Article 57 of the EEA Agreement.

For the Commission

(Signed) Johannes LAITENBERGER Director-General

OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.

2