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Notícias
The Administrative Council for Economic Defense (Cade) released its 2019 Yearbook in February. The document contains the results achieved by CADE in promoting free competition and fighting crimes against the economic order.
During the launching ceremony, CADE’s president, Alexandre Barreto, pointed out that in 2019 the institutional and structural changes made were consolidated, and that took the defense of competition in Brazil to new levels.
The president believes it is clear CADE has been playing an increasingly prominent role in antitrust enforcement both nationally and internationally, as indicated by the many historical achievements carried out in the past year. Good examples are the admission of Brazil as a member of the Competition Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the agreements signed with Petrobras, the inclusion of the agency in the scope of the General Law of Regulatory Agencies, the partnerships established with State Prosecution Services, amongst others.
“Such achievements are a result of years, decades of work, but I think the accomplishments listed show how CADE has been working to implement best practices for the agency and the country, to consolidate its prominent role nationally and internationally, and to boost the joint and coordinated actions with its partner agencies in Brazil”, he assessed.
CADE 2019 Yearbook is divided in three parts. The first shows the results of the antitrust agency regarding the analysis of mergers and acquisitions, and the suppression of anti-competitive practices. The second presents an overview of coordinated actions with other government bodies and the international performance of the agency. And the third and last part includes a profile of CADE’s employees and lists the actions implemented in 2019 that helped strengthen its work.
See below some highlights of the publication.
Defense of Competition
To promote a healthy competitive environment in Brazil, one of CADE’s duties is to analyze the impact of mergers and acquisitions to the market and to society. In 2019, CADE analyzed a record number of 433 transactions with an average time of analysis of 29 days, one of the shortest times of analysis of mergers and acquisitions in the world.
Regarding the suppression of crimes against the economic order, in 2019, CADE judged 28 cases and ratified 19 Cease-and-Desist Agreements, which amounted to about BRL 960 million in fines and monetary contributions. Moreover, the antitrust agency started 89 investigations to analyze anti-competitive practices such as cartels.
CADE also focused on improving its advocacy actions in 2019 and played an important role in the discussions concerning the civil aviation market, especially regarding baggage allowance and the remaining spots of Avianca. The agency also excelled in actions related to the natural gas and refining sectors, which resulted in the opening of these markets after the signature of two historical agreements with Petrobras.
Coordinated Actions
The partnerships with government agencies and entities and the pursuit of a more central role in the international arena, especially in Latin America, are essential pillars of CADE’s current administration.
With respect to national cooperation actions, the agency reached 27 technical cooperation agreements with State Prosecution Services in 2019. These partnerships are aimed at increasing communication to ensure greater efficiency and agility in preventing and suppressing cartels and other crimes against the economic order.
In the international arena, CADE achieved a historic feat: Brazil was accepted as an associate member of the Competition Committee of OECD. The acceptance to be a member of the Committee is an international recognition of the quality of the policies adopted for the defense of competition in Brazil and shows their alignment with international best practices.
Strengthening of CADE
In 2019, CADE also achieved an important goal with the inclusion of the agency in the scope of the General Law of Regulatory Agencies, Law 13848/2019. After the legislation was passed, CADE was given administrative, budgetary and financial autonomy, in accordance with what the OECD recommended in its latest assessment of the agency’s practices and structure.
Another action that strengthened the agency’s work in 2019 was CADE’s admission to integrate the Executive Management Committee of the Foreign Trade Chamber of the Ministry of Economy (Camex), as a guest, indefinitely. The agency’s role at Camex is to aid in the decision-making process regarding matters involving the defense of both competition and commerce (like anti-dumping measures, for example), helping with the creation and promotion of improved foreign trade policies in Brazil.