The Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH) is currently examining whether SPAR Hungary has fully and timely implemented the voluntary commitments it undertook as part of a previous investigation that concluded in December 2020.

In the earlier investigation, GVH found that SPAR had established a compliant procurement practice and abused its significant market power by imposing unjustified and unilateral fees on suppliers to place their products on the shelves.

Following the findings of violations, GVH ordered SPAR to carry out a comprehensive commitment program worth approximately 1.7 billion forints, including the creation of new job positions that did not exist before.

As part of its commitments, SPAR pledged to establish six regional supplier centers to enhance sales opportunities for local small-scale suppliers, with 90% of the regional system dedicated to new micro, small, and medium-sized suppliers. Additionally, SPAR committed to providing training in quality audits, logistics, warehousing, and marketing to support suppliers' activities.

The enforcement of commitments by the national competition authority is rigorously and thoroughly scrutinized, with potential significant fines for businesses failing to comply with the obligations set out in GVH decisions.