Competition Compliance Programmes in the Banking Sector: a New Trend in Strengthening Competition in Serbia or a Regulatory Cost?

Summary: The Commission for the Protection of Competition has made a significant step forward in developing the framework for business compliance with competition law by publishing the Guidelines for the Development of Competition Compliance Programs and the Model of Compliance Program, bringing it closer to the European Union competition law. This paper raises the question of the extent to which this normative step has been followed by practical results and whether existing institutional and regulatory conditions enable the effective implementation of competition compliance programs in the domestic banking sector. Special attention is paid to the analysis of comparative legal solutions in the member states of the European Union, where incentive mechanisms exist and can lead to a reduction of penalties for infringement of competition law in the case of compliance programs. It is concluded that, in the absence of adequate institutional incentives and effective enforcement of competition law in the banking sector, competition compliance programs do not have significant potential to strengthen competition, and their adoption may be a regulatory cost.