Sanction for restriction to the free circulation of invoices - SAGRILAFT Y PTEE
The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (hereinafter SIC), by means of Resolution 30410 of May 20, 2021, sanctioned the oil services firm Schlumberger Surenco S.A. with a fine of $5,315,491,200 pesos for violation of free competition, for having restricted the free circulation of invoices from its suppliers, preventing them from accessing factoring operations as an alternative to obtain liquidity.
According to the ruling, the company established, within its Risk Management System for Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (SARGLAFT today SAGRILAFT), additional requirements that ended up excluding other Factors authorized by the Law, since it demanded that the factoring operations of its suppliers be carried out only with entities that were supervised by the Financial Superintendence.
For the SIC, these practices carried out by the sanctioned company would have prevented the free participation of its suppliers in the liquidity supply market, imposing additional requirements not established in the Law, thus violating the main objectives of free competition established in article 333 of the Political Constitution.
According to the entity, these practices generated both exploitative and exclusionary effects in the market, causing a loss of efficiency and affecting innovative financing mechanisms such as factoring.
Therefore, the companies that are obliged to implement the Self-Control and ML/FT Risk Management System (SAGRILAFT), as well as the Transparency and Business Ethics Programs (PTEE), must seek the harmonization of the different legal duties, structuring these Systems and Programs in the prevention of illegal practices and activities, but without affecting free competition as in this case.
Likewise, they should be in harmony with the other rules of the legal system, such as, for example, labor and commercial regulations.
Want to know more?
