ECA Issues Cartel Leniency Policy to Prevent Monopolistic Practices

The Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA) issued a set of guidelines on the total exemption policy, known as Leniency Policy,  which aims to encourage cartels to cooperate with the authority to prevent monopolistic practices harmful to competition.

In context, the leniency policy for companies participating in the cartel, which self-report and deliver evidence, offers either full immunity from fines or a reduction in fines that the commission would otherwise have imposed on them.

The cartel is a group of independent market participants who collude with one another in order to improve their profits and control the market. Cartels are usually associations in the same field of business, and thus an alliance of competitors. Most judicial authorities consider it anti-competitive behavior.

The guidelines contains a set of substantive provisions of the total exemption policy in terms of persons benefiting from the exemption, and an explanation of the conditions that must be met to accept the exemption request, and the obligations of cooperation on the applicant, regarding the confidentiality of information and data.

It also includes procedural provisions for a policy of total exemption from, including a reservation request, inquiries before submitting the official application, the progress of procedures and the final approval letter.

It is worth noting that the policy of exemption from acts committed outside Egypt can also be included as horizontal agreements that take place outside the country can affect the Egyptian market, according to the provision of Article (5) of the law.

In order to ensure the benefit of those instructions, the authority issued the most prominent questions and answers to all questions and inquiries in this regard, within the framework of the general policy of the authority in creating and developing awareness to promote competition and thus development.