UK Cryptoasset Business Council (“UKCBC”) – Competition Compliance Policy

Competition or ‘antitrust’ law (“competition law”) makes sure businesses compete on a level playing field with one another and act fairly. Competition law prohibits restrictive agreements such as price fixing or bid rigging and abuse of market power. There are serious penalties, including jail time, for individuals and very high fines for companies which breach competition law.

The UKCBC is a membership organisation that promotes the interests of the UK’s crypto-economy. It does so by bringing together member firms – whom may be (in)direct competitors – to undertake various activities, including engaging with policymakers with the objective of influencing public policy, laws, regulations, and the supervision of activities related to the UK’s crypto-economy.

Membership organisations and business councils such as the UKCBC seek to engage in entirely lawful and necessary business activities, including advocacy (lobbying), research, public affairs, and other legitimate activities with and on behalf of their members. However, as business councils often bring together competitors there is an inherent risk that the conduct of members, particularly those that are competitors, may give rise to anti-competitive behaviour. Such conduct may include illegally boycotting or excluding competitors or illegal agreements to restrict competition, for example by fixing prices, sharing customers, or rigging bids.

The UKCBC and its members are committed to complying with all applicable laws including competition law. The UKCBC and its members aim to conduct activities in a manner that does not give rise to the impression of improper or illegal behaviour. The UKCBC Secretariat has developed this Policy in conjunction with UKCBC members to manage and mitigate to the greatest extent possible the risk that UKCBC activities give rise to anti-competitive behaviour.

The UKCBC and its members seek to comply in all respects with competition Law and this policy when carrying out UKCBC-related activities. Furthermore, this policy applies to non-members who participate in UKCBC activities, including participants in UKCBC’s working groups, and to UKCBC’s employees, consultants, directors, and officers.

Communications Among Members and/or at UKCBC Meetings and Events 

The UKCBC, its members and other participants must not, directly or indirectly, agree, discuss or exchange information regarding:

• current or projected prices, and any information relating to pricing, including price changes, price differentials, markups, surcharges, discounts, allowances, terms and conditions of sale, including credit terms, etc., or data that bear on prices, including profits, margins or cost.

• bids or intentions to bid for particular products or services.

• the development, design, distribution, marketing or introduction dates of particular products or services, including proposed territories or users.

• actual or potential individual suppliers that might have the effect of excluding them from any market or of influencing the business conduct of firms toward such suppliers.

• actual or potential users, such as individual user information or transaction data, that might have the effect of influencing the business conduct of firms toward such users.

• individual company sales, volumes or market shares for any product or service.

• confidential or otherwise competitively sensitive business plans, strategy or technology roadmap.

Communications at UKCBC meetings and events will be overseen by the UKCBC Secretariat. Meetings will be administered on the basis set out below. Specifically, if the UKCBC Secretariat considers that a topic of discussion presents a high inherent risk of anti-competitive discussions taking place, the following mitigating measures will be taken:

• UKCBC members will be reminded of their obligations under this policy;

• The UKCBC Secretariat will identify aspects of the topic which UKCBC members must refrain from discussing.

Meeting administration

UKCBC meetings will be conducted on the following basis:

• Prior agenda: Meetings will be preceded by a full agenda, so that the proposed topics can be reviewed by the UKCBC Secretariat for competition law compliance;

• Minutes: Meetings will be fully minuted so that in case of an investigation there is a written record of what was, and was not, discussed. There should be no off-the-record or unminuted discussions.

• Record keeping: The agenda, minutes and other important documents of meetings will be retained in accordance with record keeping obligations. 

• Competition law reminder: The first agenda item at each meeting will be a reminder of applicable competition laws and how this policy can be accessed. An instruction will be given to those present to refrain from discussing any competitively sensitive matters.

• Vigilance in policing improper topics: The UKCBC Secretariat and UKCBC members will be encouraged to object openly to any improper topic of conversation or communication, whether before, during or after meetings. The law assumes that the UKCBC Secretariat and those UKCBC members present agree to everything discussed at a meeting, even if they say nothing and merely listen. It therefore is the duty of meeting participants to object openly to any breach or potential breach of the competition laws.

The UKCBC Secretariat will remind UKCBC members that they should refrain from off-the-record discussions on UKCBC business outside of UKCBC meetings, including by email, in-person or through other communication channels.

Legal advice

Competition law is a complex area. If UKCBC members have any doubts or concerns about the programs or activities of the UKCBC, in the first instance they should raise these with the UKCBC Secretariat.