GVH Hungary News

GVH President Elected OECD Competition Committee Bureau Vice Chair

Csaba Balázs Rigó, President of the Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH), was elected to the 17-member Bureau of the OECD Competition Committee during the OECD Competition Week in Paris (December 1–5, 2025). The GVH President presented the 2025 report of the OECD-GVH Regional Centre for Competition in Budapest (RCC), which organised five seminars attended by over 300 experts in 2025 alone. The RCC, celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025, has hosted 164 events engaging approximately 6,600 professionals since its founding in 2005.

GVH Fines Six Companies HUF 1.5B for Garbage Truck Cartel

The Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH) imposed fines totalling HUF 1,278.4 million (approx. EUR 3.4 million) on six companies for operating a cartel in public procurement tenders for garbage trucks and sewer cleaning vehicles between 2014 and 2015 under the Environment and Energy Operational Programme (KEOP). Volvo Hungária Kereskedelmi Kft. received the largest fine of HUF 972.9 million plus a record HUF 270 million procedural fine for obstructing access to data during on-site investigations. A seventh company, MUT Kft., avoided further fines by paying HUF 116 million in compensation to contractors, exceeding its potential fine amount.

GVH Investigates iHerb Over Dietary Supplement Claims

The Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH) has initiated competition supervision proceedings against iHerb Netherlands BV and its U.S. parent company iHerb LLC on suspicion of using unlawful health-related claims and therapeutic effect claims in advertising food products and dietary supplements since November 2024. The investigation focuses on violations including health claims that violate sectoral regulations, claims attributing disease prevention or treatment properties, and products sold as dietary supplements without required registration with the National Centre for Public Health and Pharmacy. The case registration number is VJ/12/2026, and the standard procedural timeframe is three months, extendable twice by up to two months each.