Budapest, September 26, 2025 – The Gazdasági Versenyhivatal (GVH) has underscored its zero-tolerance approach to bid-rigging, describing collusive tendering as one of the most damaging forms of market manipulation. Speaking at a conference hosted by the University of Debrecen, GVH President Csaba Balázs Rigó said the authority remains firmly committed to detecting, dismantling, and deterring cartels that distort public procurement and waste taxpayer money.
“Uncovering and eliminating bid-rigging is among the GVH’s highest priorities,” Rigó stressed. “When competition is replaced by secret coordination, it is not efficiency that determines outcomes, but collusion — driving up prices and harming the public.”
According to Rigó, the GVH has imposed nearly HUF 30 billion (approximately $90 million) in fines for cartel conduct since 2017. In 2024 alone, fines from completed cases exceeded HUF 2.5 billion ($7.5 million), while the authority investigated 19 cartel cases involving more than 1,500 tenders, of which over 1,000 related to public funds.
Rigó said these figures show the GVH’s strong international role in uncovering procurement cartels, adding that the agency applies particular rigor in cases involving taxpayer-financed projects.
Rigó underscored that anticompetitive agreements in public tenders represent the most serious form of competition law violation, sometimes carrying criminal liability in addition to administrative penalties.
“The GVH’s mission goes beyond imposing fines,” Rigó noted. “We aim to safeguard fair competition, protect consumers, and ensure that public money is spent transparently and efficiently.”
