The Competition Council revealed that its investigative team and research services carried out a surprise raid and seizure last Tuesday at a company’s headquarters suspected of anti-competitive practices in the national on-demand delivery market, according to an official statement.
The Council explained that the visit and seizure operation was authorized by the Public Prosecutor responsible for the area and conducted with the assistance of officers from the National Brigade of Judicial Police, per Article 72 of Law 104.12 on Price Freedom and Competition, as amended.
The same source emphasized that “this operation does not imply the existence or confirmation of the suspected anti-competitive practices, nor does it establish the company’s liability in such actions.”
Only the Council’s deliberative bodies have the authority to decide whether any violations occurred, following an in-depth investigation and an adversarial process that fully respects the right to defense.
The statement noted that, in order to respect the company’s right to defense, the “Competition Council will not disclose the identity of the company involved or the practices that prompted the visit and seizure at this time.”
It also highlighted that, under Article 16 of Law 20.13 on the Competition Council, as amended, the Council has research and investigation services that carry out necessary inquiries and investigations related to anti-competitive practices and the monitoring of economic concentration as stipulated by the Law on Price Freedom and Competition.
In its statement, the Competition Council emphasized that surprise visits and seizures, as outlined in Article 72, are essential investigative tools for gathering the evidence and information needed to address issues related to anti-competitive practices or the failure to inform the Council about economic concentration activities.
For context, Hespress Ar sources reported that inspectors from the Competition Council recently visited Glovo’s headquarters in Casablanca’s Finance City following a complaint filed by Ora, a competing Moroccan company and developer of the food delivery app Kooul.
Ora’s complaint alleges that “Glovo may be engaging in anti-competitive practices by imposing restrictive conditions on restaurants.”
The same Hespress Ar sources indicated that “the inspection will focus primarily on verifying whether Glovo has engaged in abusive practices, rather than simply holding a dominant market position.”
This includes investigating actions like “refusal to sell, restricting sales, imposing discriminatory sales conditions, terminating partnerships because a partner declines unreasonable terms, or directly or indirectly setting minimum prices for products, services, or profit margins.”
The same sources revealed that “the complaint focuses on the fast-food delivery industry and the commercial relationships with restaurants.”
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