When Does Information Exchange Cross The Line Into Anti-Competitive Conduct?

I. Introduction

On January 23, a cartel workshop was held in Brussels in which the Director of the Cartel Directorate of the DG Competition, Mrs. Maria Jaspers, was questioned on the state of play of cartel enforcement and what the Commission's priorities are for 2025. This post highlights the workshop's key takeaways on what is expected from the new five-year mandate in terms of information exchange between competitors, referring also to the recent Banco Português case and the current cartel investigation in the tire replacement sector.

II. Information exchange

"If I can hint a little bit on the issues that I think you should pay attention to, and be prepared for in the year to come, then it is in the area of information exchanges" said the Director of the Cartel Directorate, emphasizing that the change in forms of collusion through information exchange is gaining momentum on the radar of EU competition law enforcers.