Prior to the adoption of Regulation (EC) 2157/2001 on the Statute for a European Company (SE) (the SE-Regulation) and the implementation of Directive 2005/56/EC on cross-border mergers of limited liability companies (the Directive) into Bulgarian national law and the accession of Bulgaria to the EU in 2007, the legal possibilities for a cross-border merger were restricted. There was no possibility of a cross-border merger in the meaning of a universal legal succession. Only an acquisition of a company's shares and assets under the general rules (applicable for Bulgarian companies) was available.
