Welcome to the Q3 2026 edition of the Regional Competition Bites. It has been a busy quarter. Across Southeast Asia, competition and consumer protection regulators deepened their focus on digital platforms, merger filings and market conduct, and several countries pushed ahead with major reforms. In this edition, we round up the key developments and what they may mean for you if you operate, invest or sell in the region.
Merger control
Merger rules are being recalibrated across the region. In Singapore, the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (“CCS“) cleared deals involving semiconductors, explosive detection systems and an air cargo joint business, and is still reviewing deals involving steel products and marina berths. CCS also refreshed its guidance for passenger airline alliances. In the Philippines, the Philippine Competition Commission is moving to mandatory e-filing and has brought back its 30-day deadline for notifying deals, which mandates careful planning in deal timelines. In Thailand, the Trade Competition Commission of Thailand (“TCCT“) has proposed halving its revenue thresholds, which would bring more deals into the net. Vietnam has gone the other way, temporarily doubling its notification thresholds while it consults on a draft decree that would make the change permanent and broaden the regime, suggesting that now is the best time to urgently complete transactions which would have previously been caught. Meanwhile, in Indonesia, the Indonesia Competition Commission (“ICC“) is encouraging state-owned enterprises to talk to it early about proposed deals as they restructure.
Anti-competitive agreements
Regulators continued to take a firm line on anti-competitive conduct. In Singapore, the High Court reinstated CCS’s finding that two warehouse operators infringed the Competition Act 2004 by exchanging pricing intentions (CCS had fined four operators a total of S$2.8 million), and CCS warned a bike-sharing operator for trying to start price talks with its rival. In Malaysia, the Malaysia Competition Commission (“MyCC“) said it is ready to look into alleged contractor cartels in airport procurement and concerns over pharmaceutical pricing and insurance, while a tourism association dropped its ceiling fares following a MyCC investigation. The Malaysian High Court also put fines on poultry feed millers on hold pending their judicial review. In Indonesia, ICC is looking into rising cement prices and found no violation in an air conditioner distribution case. In Thailand, TCCT fined Shopee for automatically signing merchants up to paid promotional programmes.
Consumer protection
Consumer protection remains firmly in the spotlight, particularly online and in high-pressure sales. In Singapore, CCS wrapped up the first phase of its largest fake online review investigation to date, with 45 businesses admitting to buying fake reviews, and secured a commitment of up to S$1 million in refunds from a beauty and wellness operator over pressure sales tactics. In Vietnam, the National Competition Commission fined Grab for consumer protection breaches and has started looking at ride-hailing fares and discounts.
Legislation and policy
Law reform is picking up speed. In Malaysia, the Senate has passed the competition law amendment bills, which will extend the law’s reach beyond Malaysia’s borders, give MyCC stronger powers, and introduce settlement, leniency and appeal mechanisms. Indonesia has updated its e-commerce rules to place more obligations on platforms, and has extended financial consumer protection to cryptocurrency services. Thailand has consulted on new standards for ride-hailing and delivery platforms covering commission fees, exclusivity, dark patterns and self-preferencing. In Vietnam, the new Law on E-commerce is now in force, bringing identity checks, platform responsibilities and stronger consumer rights.
What this means for your business
Now is a good time to take a fresh look at your competition and consumer protection compliance. Areas worth checking include merger filing timelines and thresholds, controls on contact with competitors, digital platform practices, and marketing and sales tactics. Regulators are watching these areas closely, and new or expanded rules in several countries will only raise the stakes. Now is also a good time as we are at year end; a time to refresh and pave the way for a clean start to 2027.
As always, our regional team is happy to help, whether with merger filings, risk assessments, investigations or practical compliance steps. Please get in touch with the Rajah & Tann Asia Competition & Antitrust and Trade Team if you would like to talk through how these developments may affect your business.
We hope you enjoy this edition.
For more information, click here to read the full legal update.
Disclaimer
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