Delays in regulatory approvals can create uncertainty, disrupt business timelines, and reduce the value of commercial transactions, cautioned Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday.

Regulatory frameworks, while maintaining rigorous oversight, must also facilitate swift and seamless approvals for combinations (or mergers) that pose no harm to competition, she added.

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Speaking at the 16th Annual Day of the Competition Commission of India (CCI), Sitharaman said, “India’s ongoing structural reforms – asset monetisation, disinvestment, and digital public infrastructure – are all geared towards unlocking market potential and deepening competition.”

The Finance Minister further emphasised that while regulatory frameworks must ensure strict oversight, they should also enable swift and seamless approvals for mergers and acquisitions that do not threaten market competition.

“In an export-challenged, environment-challenged, energy-challenged, and emissions-challenged world, the increased reliance on domestic growth levers requires ensuring the right balance of regulation and freedom,” the FM added.

She also expressed happiness over the introduction of the ‘Green Channel mechanism’ by the CCI, which is a trust-based, risk-calibrated approach that allows for automated approval of Combinations that are deemed to have no appreciable adverse effect on competition in order to reduce transaction costs and timelines for benign mergers and acquisitions.

The minister praised the Competition Commission of India, and said through its unique mandate and cross-sectoral role, the CCI will be a key enabler in this journey – whether it is facilitating market access for MSMEs, addressing barriers that impede fair competition, promoting digital inclusion, or ensuring that consumers benefit from better choices, lower prices, and improved quality.