OREANDA-NEWS. February 20, 2012. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) initiated a case against the Federal Customs Service (FTS Russia) upon certain signs of restricting competition on the market of payment systems (violating Part 1 Article 15 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”), reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

The case was initiated upon a petition of “Tamozhennaya Platezhnaya Sistema [Customs Payment System] Ltd. The company reported that FTS Russia had unreasonably stopped accepting bank (customs) cards, emission of which had been coordinated by the company, for payment of customs charges.

In course of the investigation, FAS established that FTS Russia had stopped accepting customs cards because it had transferred server equipment providing communication between customs bodies and “Tamozhennaya Platezhnaya Sistema” Ltd. to a new centre for data processing.

Based on the available information, it is possible to make a conclusion that FTS Russia could inform “Tamozhennaya Platezhnaya Sistema” Ltd. in advance about planned works, which enabled this coordinator of customs card emission (the coordinator) to undertake measures aimed at continual acceptance of the customs cards of its payment system.

According to FAS, documents and information submitted in course of the investigation prove that FTS Russia intentionally delayed the period for resuming work of the payment system of “Tamozhennaya Platezhnaya Sistema” Ltd. and granted advantages for carrying out similar works to its only competitor – “Tamozhennaya Karta [Custom Card]” Ltd.

FAS believes that actions of FTS Russia violated Part 1 Article 15 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”, because such actions lead to restricting competition among systems of calculations completed using customs cards.

The case is scheduled for 22nd March 2012.

FAS Russia would like to point out that in the past three years already in two instances FTS was found violating the antimonopoly law upon the fact of unreasonably preventing activities of coordinators. As FTS Russia refused to eliminate the violation, FAS issued determinations requiring FTS to formalize in FTS regulatory documents competitive conditions for activities of coordinators and prohibition of preventing activities of economic entities.

The rulings of Arbitration Courts confirm legitimacy of decisions and determinations made by the antimonopoly body.

At the same time, FAS was able to force execution of one of its determination only after the Court allowed a claim lodged by FAS to compel execution of the determination. Lodging such a claim against a federal executive body constitutes a precedent.