Dr. Frank Röhling

About Dr. Frank Röhling

Frank is the global co-head of the firm’s foreign investment group. He also heads the Berlin antitrust practice. He has more than 20 years of private practice, in-house and regulator experience, advising clients on global merger control, foreign investment review and antitrust investigations.

Frank has worked in several offices around the network and has gained additional antitrust experience working in-house and as a trainee in other law firms and competition authorities.

Frank's clients value his calm professionalism and practical approach when handling what can sometimes be complex and demanding situations.

He has built significant sectoral experience through transactions and compliance matters across several industries. Recent client work includes high-profile matters in the TMT, Life Science and construction sectors. He complements his client work by publishing articles and is a frequent speaker at various conferences, including the ABA. Furthermore, he regularly advises clients under foreign investment rules before the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action and also abroad.

Frank is ranked as a leading lawyer in several legal directories for antitrust, media and foreign investment.

He is bilingual (German and French) and fluent in English.

Recent work

• Saint-Gobain on the acquisition of GCP under applicable merger control and foreign investment laws globally.
• Saint-Gobain on the divestments of its building materials distribution businesses in Germany and the Netherlands (EU notifications).
• Various Chinese acquirers under German and other foreign investment laws in various sectors (including health and life science).
• The investors of flaschenpost, the leading e-commerce beverage delivery service on its divestment to Oetker / Durstexpress.
• Hellman & Friedman on its acquisition and sale of Nets Group under merger control and foreign investment laws.
• KKR, Advent International and several other PE funds in various merger control proceedings before the European Commission and national competition authorities as well as under foreign investment laws.
• CME’s TV stations in 6 central and eastern European countries on all aspects of competition law, including several dominance proceedings relating to advertising and telecom access.
• Regular, ongoing antitrust advice of a leading European e-commerce platform in Europe.
• Airbus on the sale of its electronic defence business to KKR under foreign investment laws.
• Liberty Global / Vodafone - Headline Phase II merger clearance by (and innovative remedies negotiations with) the European Commission regarding the German cable network consolidation (following two blocking decisions by the German antitrust regulator).
• RHI on the acquisition of Magnesita (approval by the European Commission was granted in phase 1 with commitments).
• A German media house on two highly complex phase 2 mergers, including negotiations of remedies, and on the merger of two leading online real estate portals (Immonet and Immowelt), one of the few cases where merger approval was granted in phase 1 for a three-to-two merger.
• Daimler on the joint acquisition with Rolls-Royce of Tognum and the subsequent divestment of its stake to Rolls-Royce.