Huge construction ‘cartel’ threatened with millions in fines
The Swiss Competition Commission (COMCO) has uncovered evidence of a massive construction price fixing scam that allegedly swindled municipal projects by over-charging for work, the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper reports.
The cartel is believed to have consisted of hundreds of companies of all sizes and has implicated local politicians in canton Graubünden in southeastern Switzerland. The area is a favourite haunt for tourists, some of whom have holiday homes in the region.
Projects to renovate a rail tunnel and build an extension to a hospital may have been over-charged 20%, according to reports. COMCOExternal link has been investigating the alleged scam since 2012 and is set to issue its final verdict in a few weeks.
“The investigation into price fixing in canton Graubünden is one of the largest we have worked on,” COMCO vice-director Frank Stüssi told the newspaper. It is thought that construction companies met up to discuss lists of projects that would be shared out for inflated prices.
A whistleblower went to COMCO because he felt his complaints were not being taken seriously by the local authorities.
A guilty verdict brings the possibility of fines totaling millions of francs, which could threaten the existence of some smaller companies, according to industry experts.
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Swiss competition commission fines banks
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According to the announcement on Wednesday, different investigations found that the following banks took part: Credit Suisse, UBS, Deutsche Bank, US financial institutions Citigroup and JPMorgan, British banks Barclays and the Royal Bank of Scotlan, and the French Société Générale. The total fines add up to CHF99 million ($96 million). The investigation began in 2012,…
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In a statement on Thursday the company, a former state monopoly which is still majority-owned by the government, denied these allegations and said it would contest the ruling and fine. In its investigation of the 2008 tender for a company network for Swiss Post, COMCO concluded that other providers had been unable to make a…
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