EUROPEAN COMMISSION DG Competition

Case M.9021 - DNB BANK / ORKLA / OPTIMIZD

Only the English text is available and authentic.

REGULATION (EC) No 139/2004 MERGER PROCEDURE

Article 6(1)(b) NON-OPPOSITION Date: 08/08/2018

In electronic form on the EUR-Lex website under document number 32018M9021

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Brussels, 08.08.2018 C(2018) 5502 final

PUBLIC VERSION

To the notifying parties:

Subject: Case M. 9021 - DNB BANK / ORKLA / OPTIMIZD Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area

Dear Sir or Madam,

1.On 16 July 2018, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 of the Merger Regulation by which DNB Bank ASA (Norway) and Orkla ASA (Norway) acquire within the meaning of Articles 3(1)(b) and 3(4) of the Merger Regulation joint control of Optimizd AS (Norway). The concentration is accomplished by way of a share capital increase.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

- DNB Bank ASA provides financial services, i.e. banking and insurance, to retail customers, corporate clients and the public sector.

- Orkla ASA is a supplier of branded consumer goods to the grocery, out-of-home, specialised retail, pharmacy and bakery sectors. In addition, the group has operations organised under the Orkla Investments business area, consisting of investments in Jotun AS, in addition to hydropower and financial assets.

- Optimizd AS will facilitate data driven marketing through own-channel marketing and purchased media placements, as well as conducting analysis of data for use in marketing.

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 260, 24.7.2018, 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(a) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.

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

4OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.

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