The euro turned out to be a stress test that will wake up the authorities to work. This was stated by the Deputy Chairman of the Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) Radomir Cholakov.
„I had a meeting with colleagues from all similar European regulators. They shared that there are three factors that must work in sync to control prices – the media, society and regulators. The media do not mention the names of companies, however, this restriction is not written into any law, they simply imposed it on themselves. From the point of view of the right of citizens to be informed, the media can report positive news – this is advertising, if it is reported in a negative light – "damages its image," he commented on bTV.
“Rumen Spetsov mentioned two mineral waters that have raised their prices by 40%. No one checked who they were, no one reported it. The reaction of consumers would be instant if citizens found out. Other countries in this situation have acted in the following way - there was a comparison of stores and the media reported with their names," Cholakov specified.
He suggested having a consumer bulletin in the media: “The pressure must come from citizens. If the media provide the information, which is their job, and if citizens react correctly, and the authorities receive this information - you understand how much more effective we will be together. The free market is regulated by the free behavior of consumers. In other countries, there is solidarity between people, media and authorities. We do not have it. We all have to cope together, not just the state. Not that we are running away from responsibility.“
„The problem will be with the rounding of prices from January 1, 2026. 5.11 euros are 10 leva. The question is how this amount will be rounded so that the change can be easily returned. A smart retail chain will round to 5 euros“, he believes.
„There is a penalty for a cartel. This is a bit of a literary term. The very term speculation is defined as „raising prices when the difficult situation of the state and citizens is used“. We must also return to the term „state aid“, Cholakov also said.
„Maybe we should stop barking and start biting. We will have good news these days – "There will be someone bitten," he announced.