The Spanish Competition Authority (CNMC) has fined the Procurators Council for recommending prices and spreading misleading information about its auction platform, www.subastasprocuradores.com. This conduct constitutes a serious violation of competition laws in Spain and the EU.

The Council's actions affected the auction intermediation sector in Spain, particularly for extrajudicial auctions of goods and rights through electronic means. The CNMC initiated the sanctioning procedure based on a complaint from Activos Concursales S. L. in December 2022.

In May 2016, the Council launched the platform www.subastasprocuradores.com, setting commissions for procurators using the platform. The Council's pricing recommendations aimed to eliminate price competition among intermediaries, potentially affecting market dynamics.

The CNMC also found that the Council engaged in unfair competition by promoting its platform as the sole alternative to judicial auctions and implying a higher level of safety and reliability due to its association with a public law corporation.