Watchdog takes legal action against syndicate seeking ‘quarter of renovation market’
Competition Commission targets six undertakings involving eight companies and 12 individuals tied to building maintenance projects worth nearly HK$700 million
Hong Kong’s competition watchdog has taken legal action against a syndicate it accuses of trying to corner a quarter of the building maintenance market, with one of the bids under scrutiny involving the Tai Po housing complex destroyed in a deadly blaze last year.
The Competition Commission said on Wednesday it had launched proceedings at the Competition Tribunal over six undertakings involving eight companies and 12 individuals concerning building maintenance projects worth nearly HK$700 million (US$89.4 million).
The legal action targets alleged corruption and anti-competitive practices in the syndicate’s bids for projects at 11 housing estates and buildings between April 2022 and September 2023.
One of the estates was Wang Fuk Court, where 168 people died in an inferno in November last year.
“Internal communications of the syndicate obtained during our search operations reveal their ambition to corner a quarter of Hong Kong’s building maintenance market through illicit means – clearly reflecting their high degree of scheming and greed,” commission CEO Rasul Butt said.
“I must emphasise that this is just the beginning. The commission will continue to pursue different bid-rigging syndicates with more proceedings to follow.”