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Antitrust Developments and Enforcement Activities in Southeast Asia: January-March 2024: Allen & Gledhill

Posted on by darion










June 20, 2024

In this issue Competition Law QuarterlyWe highlight significant developments in antitrust and enforcement activities in Southeast Asia during the first quarter of 2024, including the following:

  • Indonesia: Indonesian Competition Commission (“KPPU”) announced the completion of the study on education loans. The study found that lending companies set exorbitant interest rates, much higher than those for bank loans. The KPPU launched an investigation after the probe found allegations of violations of Indonesian competition law.
  • Singapore: Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (“CCCS”) has launched an in-depth review of Grab Rentals’ proposed acquisition of Trans-cab. Once the review is complete, the CCCS will decide whether to issue a favorable or unfavorable decision on the proposed acquisition.

In the same quarter, CCCS granted conditional approval to a series of transactions involving Air India Limited, Singapore Airlines Ltd and Tata SIA Airlines Ltd (trading under the ‘Vistara’ brand) (collectively ‘Pages“). This approval followed the acceptance of commitments by the Parties, which the CCCS considered sufficient to address the competition concerns arising from the transaction. The CCCS approved the transactions on March 5, 2024, provided that the Parties meet their proposed commitments.

  • Malaysia: The Malaysian Competition Commission has announced its position on paddy and rice related issues, stressing that it has not initiated any investigations against any parties in the paddy and rice industry as they are yet to receive relevant information from any of the parties, particularly the Competition Authority. . Paddy and Rice Monitoring of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.
  • Vietnam: National Competition Commission of Vietnam (“VCC”) enhanced international cooperation by signing memorandums of understanding with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the Japanese Fair Trade Commission to strengthen cooperation and exchange of knowledge to protect competition and consumers. VCC plans to do the same with the Korea Fair Trade Commission.
  • Thailand: The Trade Competition Commission of Thailand reviewed a total of 17 cases, including 10 cases filed after the merger; six cases concerning unfair commercial practices, including abuse of dominant power; and one case relating to cartel conduct. These cases involved parties from various industries such as e-commerce, franchise businesses and banking platforms.

For more, click Here for an overview of significant developments in antitrust law in Southeast Asia from January to March 2024. To see if there has been any enforcement activity in your sector in the first quarter of 2024, see the chart overview Here.