Billa mother Rewe has to pay the antitrust sentence that has been assumed so far in Austria. The Supreme Court (OGH) as Antitrusthof, the fine of 1.5 million euros originally established by the Antitrusthof, rose to 70 million euros. The trigger was a takeover of sales areas for a branch in Wels.
The reason is the prohibited implementation of a merger. The rather highest antitrust sentences received (EUR 62.4 million) and Strabag (45.4 million euros) as part of the construction cartel.
Takeover of sales areas in Wels
The Rewezaak was a few years ago: in mid-2018, the then subsidiary Merkur Warenhandels AG (now Billa Plus) took over sales areas for a food shopping center in Welas Park in Wels, where Weiß Handels GmbH had previously operated a food store. This process was not registered with the Federal Competition Authority (BWB) as a merger-a mistake that the Billa mother Rewe now costs a lot of money.
Paste based on the annual turnover
The determination of the record fine is based on the annual turnover of the German REWE group of more than 92 billion euros in 2023. The limit of the cartel -criminal frame is a maximum of 10 percent of sales, ie up to 9 billion euros. “Preventive and repressive purposes strive for fines according to the Antitrust Act, which requires an appropriate amount, otherwise no discouraging effect will be achieved,” said the Supreme Court.
If an OGH has already been made clear that in Austria it is effectively combating cartels violations of fines in the order, as is usual at trade union level and in numerous Member States. “
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
