Government Announces Extra Litigation Funding For Competition Commission

The Hong Kong Government has announced that it will provide extra dedicated funding of HKD 200 million (approximately US 25 million) to the Hong Kong Competition Commission (HKCC), to enable it bring cases to the Competition Tribunal against businesses suspected of violating the Competition Ordinance. This is in addition to the annual grant which the Government gives to the Commission, which the Government said it will also be increasing (it did not say by how much).

This is likely to provide a timely boost to the HKCC's enforcement efforts, and increase the regulator's confidence in taking companies to the Competition Tribunal for competition law breaches. Businesses in Hong Kong should be even more vigilant than before in ensuring that their commercial arrangements and conduct comply with the Competition Ordinance.