Mexico Brings First Criminal Antitrust Actions For Bid Rigging

In an unprecedented action, this month the Investigation Bureau of the Mexican Federal Competition Commission (COFECE) has brought criminal prosecutions against individuals who allegedly participated in bid rigging activities in Mexico between 2009 and 2015. This is the first criminal action COFECE has brought and is a direct result of the revisions to Mexico's competition laws in 2014, which enhanced COFECE's enforcement powers.

According to COFECE, a number of bidders coordinated their participation in public tenders related to the health sector of Mexico. The conduct purportedly affected in more than $1,200 million Mexican pesos ($58.7 million dollars) worth of purchases made by the Mexican Government. While the details are confidential, COFECE has recently investigated several industries within the healthcare sector including latex products, industrial oxygen, medicine distribution, and blood banks/laboratory testing.