SELF-MADE ROBOT WON AN AUCTION FOR SALE OF BANKRUPTCY ESTATE

It raised the auction price step-by-step by 690% from the initial value, making around 127 steps with 5-second intervals

The robot’s actions prevented other bidders to file their price offers.

Krasnodar OFAS made a decision on a case finding that two auction bidders had breached Clause 2 Part 1 Article 11 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”: concluding and participating in an agreement that had led to maintaining prices at an auction for sale of bankruptcy estate.

The auction winner refused to enter into the contract will ultimately was concluded with the second participant of the anticompetitive agreement (with the price overrated by 55%).

“It is obviously a classical “ramming” scheme but with use of digital technologies. In this case, the robot’s actions on raising the price replaced actions of two participants of the anticompetitive agreement”, commented Head of FAS Anti-Cartel Department Andrey Tenishev.