A shower of heavy fines has arrived from the Antitrust. In the crosshairs, financing for the purchase of cars on the one hand, and the practices to ensure the transition from the regulated to the free market of electricity customers. On 20 December 2018, the Competition and Market Guarantor Authority completed an investigation, launched against the major captive banks and related automotive groups operating in Italy in the sector of car sales through financial products, as well as the related trade associations. Based on the severity and duration of the infringement, the Authority has inflicted fines of around 678 million euro.
ENEL AND ACEA COMMERCIAL PRACTICES IN THE SIGHT
The announcement came today, Wednesday 9 January, but the decision was made in mid-December. Also in that same meeting, the Antitrust decided to sanction for over 93 million euros for the Enel group and over 16 million euros for the Acea group for abusing its dominant position in the markets for the sale of electricity. Basically, the Antitrust established that both groups operated in order to "ferry" their bound customers towards contracts on the free market. All this, to ensure the package of customers in view of the deadline of 1 July 2020, the date on which the enhanced protection service will end - which today affects over 60% of families - to make way for a single national sales market fully liberalized electricity sector. On the same day, the Authority assessed the commercial conduct of the A2A group in the same markets, not finding sufficient probative elements to ascertain the infringement also against this operator.
In particular, the investigation ascertained that both Enel (from January 2012 to May 2017) and Acea (from 2014 to the whole of 2017) obtained the privacy consents of customers served under enhanced protection to be contacted for commercial purposes and then used these "accepted" lists (i.e. on which consent had been expressed) to formulate targeted offers to the same protected customers, aimed at getting them to enter into a contract on the free market. "Given that none of the competitors is able to reply - states the document published by the Antitrust Authority - in the areas where the two groups exclusively provide the enhanced protection service, the described operation is illegitimate and suitable for artificially amplifying the competitive advantage which these groups already enjoy for historical/regulatory reasons and linked to the characteristics of the demand". Enel reports that "it believes it has always acted in full compliance with current regulations and is convinced that it can demonstrate the correctness of its actions before the Regional Administrative Court to which it will immediately appeal".
Furthermore, with regard to Acea, the proceeding highlighted how, in defining its commercial strategies, Acea Energia availed itself of a series of privileged and detailed information on the performance of the shares and on the positioning of competitors in the geographical areas in which the group carries out the distribution service, provided by the Areti distribution company. These conducts, is the conclusion of the Antitrust, are suitable for altering the competitive dynamics towards non-integrated sellers.
STANGATA ON THE CAR
About auto, the investigation was initiated following an application for clemency by the companies Daimler AG and Mercedes Benz Financial Services Italia SpA, and concluded by ascertaining the implementation of a single and complex agreement concerning the exchange of sensitive information relating to quantities and prices, including current and future ones.
The Authority has ascertained that the companies Banca PSA Italia SpA, Banque PSA Finance SA, Santander Consumer Bank SpA, BMW Bank GmbH, BMW AG, Daimler AG, Mercedes Benz Financial Services Italia SpA, FCA Bank SpA, FCA Italy SpA, CA Consumer Finance SA, FCE Bank Plc., Ford Motor Company, General Motor Financial Italia SpA, General Motors Company, RCI Banque SA, Renault SA, Toyota Financial Services Plc., Toyota Motor Corporation, Volkswagen Bank GmbH, Volkswagen AG., as well as trade associations Assofin and Assileabetween 2003 and 2017, implemented a restrictive agreement on competition, aimed at modifying the competitive dynamics in the market for the sale of cars of the groups they belong to through loans granted by the respective captive banks. Captive banks are institutions intended to provide banking services to a promoter and its associates. Typically, a captive bank is wholly owned by a multinational group of companies.
Based on the seriousness and duration of the offence, the Authority imposed fines, for a total of approximately 678 million euro. The Authority also recognized the benefit of thetotal immunity from the fine in favor of the companies Daimler AG and Mercedes Benz Financial Services Italia SpA which, as leniency applicants (leniency programs designed to incentivize members of a company to take the initiative to confess and thus help the police), avoided the imposition of a fine exceeding 60 million euros.
