On April 1–2, an International Roundеable titled “Competition Development in Financial Services Markets” was held in a hybrid format at the Education and Methodics Center of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia in Kazan. Irina Atrokhova, Deputy Director of the BRICS Competition Law and Policy Centre, spoke at the Meeting of the Headquarters for Joint Investigations of Violations of Antimonopoly Legislation of the CIS Member States (CIS+ format) on the topic: “Pro-competitive Rules for Interaction Between Credit and Insurance Organizations in Borrower Risk Insurance in Russia, CIS countries, BRICS, and partner states.”
The roundtable included several thematic sessions devoted to the legal and regulatory aspects of competition development in financial services markets. During the plenary session, participants discussed current legislation and trends in its development in Russia and abroad, as well as the balance between state control and market mechanisms. Separate sessions addressed antimonopoly control over economic concentration transactions, including assessment of their impact on competition and financial system stability, as well as issues of unfair competition among financial organizations and mechanisms for its prevention and suppression.
The Meeting of the Headquarters for Joint Investigations of Violations of Antimonopoly Legislation of the CIS Member States was moderated by Anton Teslenko, Deputy Head of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia. The Headquarters operates under the Interstate Council for Antimonopoly Policy of the CIS member states, serving as a platform for working discussions and preparation of materials for the Council’s meetings.
Topics for discussion:
- Types of agreements between financial organizations and their admissibility in the Russian Federation and abroad.
- Approaches of competition authorities to assessing agreements between credit and insurance organizations.
- Issues in the legal regulation of interaction between credit and insurance organizations.
- Anti-competitive and pro-competitive examples of interaction between credit and insurance organizations.
- Judicial protection of borrowers’ rights to choose an insurance company when obtaining a loan.
- Prospects for the development of the regulatory framework governing interaction between credit and insurance organizations.
- Substantive content of the report on legal regulation ensuring borrowers’ choice of insurance companies in consumer lending within CIS member states, prepared by the Headquarters.
Speakers:
- Olga Sergeeva, Head of the Financial Markets Control Department, FAS Russia;
- Mr. Rakymzhan Murat Rgebaiuly, Deputy Director of the Financial Markets Department of the Agency for Protection and Development of Competition of the Republic of Kazakhstan (to be confirmed);
- Irina Atrokhova, Deputy Director of the International BRICS Competition Law and Policy Centre.
Discussion participants:
- Marina Pishchulina, Deputy Head of the Financial Markets Control Department, FAS Russia;
- Anastasia Fedorova, Head of the Methodology Department for Antimonopoly Control in Financial Markets, Financial Markets Control Department, FAS Russia.
The Interstate Council for Antimonopoly Policy (ICAP) was established in 1993. It is composed of authorized representatives of CIS member states. The Council’s work is primarily aimed at improving national competition legislation of CIS countries and its enforcement practices based on advanced international experience.