EC Launches Financial Services Antitrust Probe

by Ulrika Lomas, for LawAndTax-News.com, Brussels

26 July 2004

In a statement released on Friday, the European Commission announced that it has launched an own-initiative antitrust probe in the European financial services sector.

According to the statement, Commission officials, assisted by officials from National Competition Authorities, launched simultaneous unannounced inspections at the premises of Euronext and certain financial services companies in Paris, Amsterdam and London. However, the financial services companies were not named.

Explaining:

"The purpose of the inspections is to ascertain whether there is evidence establishing a breach of European competition rules," the statement went on to clarify that: "The probe concerns business practises. For the avoidance of doubt, there is no concern about trading operations."

The Commission was also at pains to stress that:

"An inspection is only an initial step in an antitrust investigation. The probe is at a preliminary stage and the investigation measures taken do not prejudge any final outcome. There is no fixed timetable for concluding antitrust investigations which depend on a number of factors, including the evidence uncovered by the Commission, the extent to which the undertakings concerned co-operate and the complexity of each case."

Recommended