SOFIA, Dec. 19, 2025
Bulgaria’s Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) has conditionally approved Phoenix Bulgaria’s acquisition of control over 47 Medea pharmacies, citing concerns about potential risks to competition in the pharmaceutical supply chain.
The watchdog said its in-depth review found that the deal would create a vertically integrated structure linking one of the country’s largest wholesale distributors of medicines with a sizeable retail pharmacy network. Given Phoenix Pharma’s position as an exclusive distributor of certain prescription medicines for which no alternatives exist on the Bulgarian market, the CPC warned of risks such as preferential supply to its own pharmacies or unjustified refusal to supply competing outlets.
To address these concerns, the CPC imposed a series of binding commitments. Within six months, Phoenix Pharma must amend its general supply terms to ensure transparent and non-discriminatory allocation of prescription medicines for which it is the sole distributor, with the authority exercising ongoing oversight. An independent audit of Phoenix Pharma’s pharmacy software will also be carried out to ensure it does not allow access to competitively sensitive data from independent pharmacies using the system.
In addition, Phoenix Pharma committed to limiting annual price increases for its pharmacy software to no more than 10%, with any higher increase requiring prior approval from the CPC. The authority warned that failure to fully implement the measures could trigger enforcement proceedings, including fines or additional behavioural or structural remedies.
The CPC said the conditional clearance reflects best European practice and underlines its intention to closely scrutinise vertical concentration in the pharmaceutical sector in order to protect competition and consumer interests.
Source: https://www.cpc.bg/news-461
