BRG Expands Iberian Presence with Senior Competition Hire

BRG today announces the appointment of João Cardoso Pereira as a director in the firm’s Antitrust & Competition practice. Based in Lisbon and affiliated with the firm’s Brussels office, he adds depth to BRG’s offering across Iberia, Latin America and Lusophone Africa.

Cardoso Pereira brings nearly two decades of experience in European competition and antitrust matters as both a public enforcer and competition expert.

Before joining BRG, Cardoso Pereira spent over a decade at the Portuguese Competition Authority (AdC), most recently as coordinator of Economic Analysis, where he led a team responsible for detecting and investigating abuses of dominance and strengthened the role of economic evidence in Portuguese enforcement. As the founder of AdC’s Digital Task Force, he established the authority as a leading voice on competition in digital markets, artificial intelligence and algorithmic collusion and contributed to implementation of the Digital Markets Act. Prior to AdC, he spent six years at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition (DG COMP) working on high-profile investigations across sectors.

At BRG, Cardoso Pereira will collaborate closely with the firm’s established team of experts, including Dr. Adina Claici, a managing director in Brussels. Alongside BRG’s wider competition team, he will support clients on complex antitrust and competition matters. His appointment builds on BRG’s recent acquisition of German consultancy E.CA Economics, strengthening the firm’s rapidly expanding Antitrust & Competition practice and extending its reach across key European jurisdictions.

Commenting on his appointment, Cardoso Pereira said: “BRG represents an exceptional platform for the kind of work I want to do. The firm combines scale, global reach and genuine depth of expertise across complementary disciplines—exactly what is needed to deliver the best advice to clients navigating complex competition matters. I look forward to contributing to BRG’s continued growth in Europe and beyond”.

Claici said: ” We are delighted to welcome João to BRG. He is an outstanding economist with deep experience across European competition enforcement, and I have long admired his thoughtful, rigorous work. João will be a fantastic addition to our team. His collaborative and solutions-focused mindset, together with his commitment and professionalism, will further strengthen our European competition practice. Having worked with him at DG COMP, I look forward to reuniting with him as we continue to grow our presence across Europe”.

BRG Vice Chairman Dr. David Sunding added: “João’s arrival is another significant step in the growth of our European competition practice as we continue to expand our presence across national jurisdictions. His public-enforcement background, experience at both national and EU levels and deep sectoral knowledge will strengthen our ability to support clients facing increasingly complex and cross-border competition challenges”.