Serbia updates
Competition & Antitrust
Contributed by SchoenherrCompetition authority opens gun-jumping investigation in pharmacy sector
- Serbia
- 21 January 2021
The Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) is investigating whether Pharmacy Janković has beached the obligation to notify the acquisition of control over a pharmacy chain in the town of Zrenjanin. Zrenjanin has granted a concession to the pharmacy to finance, revitalise, manage and run pharmaceutical operations for 15 years.
Competition authority opens investigation into potential RPM practice in consumer electronics market
- Serbia
- 14 January 2021
The Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) has opened an investigation and conducted dawn raids at the premises of importers and wholesalers of consumer electronics for possible anti-competitive agreements concerning resale price maintenance. Based on a preliminary assessment, the CPC believes that importers and wholesalers imposed price restrictions on retailers.
COVID-19: competition commission deadlines during and after state of emergency
- Serbia
- 21 May 2020
The government recently lifted the state of emergency which had been declared due to the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing normal operations to gradually resume. As a result, all deadlines for the Commission for the Protection of Competition and parties to proceedings that ended between 24 March 2020 and 6 May 2020 are now deemed to end on 5 June 2020. This includes the submission of merger notifications, responses to requests for information, decisions and clearances.
Competition authority imposes landmark fine under leniency programme
- Serbia
- 28 November 2019
The Commission for the Protection of Competition has published its first leniency decision in a cartel case, following a report by one of the cartel participants. The leniency programme was introduced in 2009 but had yet to yield results. The leniency decision is therefore a watershed moment in the programme's development and signals an improvement in the commission's anti-cartel enforcement record.
New state aid regime
- Serbia
- 14 November 2019
From 1 January 2020, Serbia will have a new state aid regime under the new Act on State Aid Control. One of the goals of the new act is to harmonise Serbia's state aid legal framework with EU law, which will help to advance the EU accession process and the implementation of Negotiation Chapter 8 – Competition Policy. Until now, market participants have not focused on compliance with the state aid rules, likely due to a lack of awareness and relatively lenient enforcement; this is expected to change under the new act.
