Both companies issued statements denying the allegations of alleged collusion made by the FNE.
Chile.- Through public statements, both Enjoy and Dreams expressed their rejection of the accusations of collusion made by the National Economic Prosecutor's Office (FNE), which involve the companies in an alleged cartel along with Marina del Sol.
“We regret and reject that a self-report by a third party involves Enjoy S.A. in acts of collusion in which it has had no participation,” the company stated in its communication.
On the other hand, Dreams stated in its letter: “As a company, we regret being involved in this process while always operating with strict ethical standards and prevention models” and states that it “rejects any accusation that undermines free competition and practices contrary to a healthy development of the industry”.
In this line, Dreams also noted that they oppose “any malpractice that contravenes the guidelines of the board, which has always mandated competing in tenders and acting in accordance with the legal framework in all its processes”.
Finally, Dreams assured that it collaborated in the investigation, providing the “available background” and that, in this new stage before the Tribunal for the Defense of Free Competition (TDLC) “will assert all its means of defense” in order for the tribunal to dismiss the FNE's request.
Enjoy also reiterated its commitment to the communities in which it operates and noted that its tendering processes follow strict standards. “Enjoy S.A. has strict internal standards that govern the tendering processes in which it participates, always aligned with the regulations and established regulatory frameworks,” it added.
The company reported that it will use all legal resources to defend itself against the accusations, which it described as unfounded. “We will use all the mechanisms provided by the law to defend ourselves in a process that is just beginning,” the company stated.
Concurrently, Enjoy issued an essential fact to the Commission for the Financial Market (CMF), in which it details that it has not yet been formally notified of the requirement presented by the FNE before the TDLC. In this document, signed by its general manager, Esteban Rigo-Righi, the company emphasizes: “To date, Enjoy has not been notified of the aforementioned requirement”.
The company emphasized in its communication that it will continue to be available to collaborate with the authorities in the process. “Enjoy has been and will continue to be available to collaborate with the authority,” it underscored.
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The National Economic Prosecutor's Office (FNE) presented a requirement before the Tribunal for the Defense of Free Competition (TDLC) against Dreams, Enjoy, and Marina del Sol, the three main casino chains in Chile, and against five senior executives of these companies for having “colluded to affect the outcome of the national casino operation permit tenders held by the Superintendence of Casino Games (SCJ) in 2020 and 2021”.
In its requirement, the FNE asked the TDLC to apply fines for fiscal benefit totaling 171,354 Annual Tax Units (UTA), equivalent to USD151.9m and, in addition, to terminate the renewed permits to Dreams, Enjoy, and Marina del Sol in the mentioned tender processes, extending their validity only until new gaming casinos that are awarded in a new competitive process begin their operations. These are the highest fines in history.
The National Economic Prosecutor, Jorge Grunberg, stated: "This collusion allowed Dreams, Enjoy, and Marina del Sol to renew for 15 years the permits they had to operate gaming casinos in the country, with economic offers that were well below those that would have guaranteed a competitive process. Therefore, we ask the TDLC to order the termination of such permits so that the damages of this cartel do not last for all the years that the licenses that were improperly obtained by the operators last."
The highest fines were requested for Dreams, with 126,806 UTA (approximately USD112.4m); and for Enjoy, with 41,498 UTA (almost USD36.8m). Regarding the required executives, the FNE requested the payment of 1,218 UTA (approximately USD1m) in the case of the general manager of Dreams, Jaime Wilhelm; 941 UTA for the chairman of the board of Dreams, Claudio Fischer (about USD834,000); 761 UTA (about USD674,000) for the administration and finance manager of Dreams, Claudio Tessada; and, 130 UTA (almost USD115,000) for the chairman of the board of Enjoy, Henry Comber.
