Allegations in Chile over presumed collusion to obtain licenses
The National Economic Prosecutor’s Office (FNE) has accused casino companies Dreams, Enjoy, and Marina del Sol, along with five of their senior executives, of colluding to secure bidding for operating permits nationwide.
In a filing submitted to the Tribunal for the Defence of Free Competition (TDLC) the FNE specified that for the bidding processes conducted by the Superintendence of Gaming Casinos (SCJ) in 2020 and 2021, the companies agreed that each would bid for the renewal of the permits they already held at that time.
“The evidence shows that as the submission dates for the offers approached, there were constant communications among these executives, which progressively became more explicit about the idea of collaboratively addressing these processes,” the Prosecutor’s Office stated.
Chilean Economy Minister Nicolás Grau emphasised that the FNE has a strong case:
“Let’s start by pointing out what the Prosecutor’s Office is claiming with very strong evidence. The FNE is alleging that there was coordination among three companies to see who would participate in the different bids . . . What one expects in a bidding process is that since it is competitive, they must provide to the State the maximum that is compatible with their business development, but what happens is that they are offering less because they coordinated to avoid this competitive mechanism. This is extremely serious,” the minister said. He emphasized that “collusion could even involve criminal consequences once the current process concludes . . . The Prosecutor’s Office has very compelling evidence,” he said.
The FNE requested the TDLC to impose fines to benefit the treasury totalling 171,354 Annual Tax Units (UTA), equivalent to US$151.9 million.
