Romanian banking lobby challenges competition council's ROBRO penalty rationale

The Romanian Banking Employers' Council (CPBR) has publicly contested the arguments presented by Competition Council president Bogdan Chirițoiu regarding penalties levied on ten banks for alleged collusion in setting the ROBOR benchmark. CPBR maintains that sharing or monitoring competitors' quotation data is not, by itself, a breach of competition law and that concrete evidence of anti-competitive behavior is required.

It highlights that banks have varied balance-sheet structures, financing costs, and risk exposures, meaning a rise in ROBOR does not uniformly advantage each institution. The council also notes that the authority must demonstrate the precise conduct and legal classification of the alleged infringement. While acknowledging the Competition Council's right to explain its decisions, CPBR insists that banks' right to defence and judicial independence must be respected, and it plans to challenge the fines through legal channels.