On 11 July 2017, EBA participated at a working meeting organized by the Competition Council, to discuss the proposals aiming at improving the amendments included in the recent draft law adjusting the legal framework to the provisions of the Law 183/2012 on competition, recommended previously by business associations.
The main issues addressed by EBA referred to the amount of the sanctions proposed to the Contravention Code and set for failure to implement within the prescribed period or for inadequate enforcement of Competition Council decisions or prescriptions issued for application of the legislation in the area of competition, state aid and advertising, which shall be reduced similarly to the amount provided in the Contravention Code for violation of state aid legislation and regulations, taking account also of the recent changes of the (increased) amount of a conventional unit.
Additionally, EBA questioned the appropriateness of the amendments to the Law 550/1995 on financial institutions, conferring larger prerogatives to the Competition Council in accessing banking information, considering that the current legal framework establishes the basis for providing the Competition Council with information that refers including to banking secrecy and confidentiality.