Competition Council warns banks about information sharing

The Romanian Competition Council has warned the Association of Banks active in the country that the exchange of information about the costs of loans offered to consumers could infringe the competition law and the Eu treaty, if it will be followed by a concerted activity. “The warning comes after the banks' lobby to modify the Government emergency ordinance for loan contracts. It is legit for the members of the association to meet and discuss, but under certain circumstances, the exchange of sensible information between competitors could have negative effects over the competition and the consumers, because it will infringe the principle that each company should establish their policy independently,” said Bogdan Chiritoiu, president of the Competition Council. The Romanian Government has recently issued an emergency ordinance which was canceling the anticipated reimbursement fees for loans with variable interest. Banks have asked the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission, which have had review missions in Romania, to draft a new letter of intention which would compel the government to give up on the clause stating the fee canceling applied to all previous contracts. The current legislation says banks need to change almost all loan contracts by September 19 to include the new anticipated reimbursement conditions.