ICCC assessing application

Business

By DALE LUMA
THE Independent Consumer Competition Commission (ICCC) says it has received an authorisation application from Kina Securities Ltd (KSL) on its proposed acquisition of Westpac’s Pacific business.
Commissioner and chief executive officer Paulus Ain said ICCC would assess the competition effects and public benefits of the acquisition through the authorisation process for a final determination.
This will be done through a public consultation process in which submissions from stakeholders and the general public will be received by the ICCC for a final determination on whether to authorise the acquisition under the ICCC Act.
“The process that ICCC will conduct is very transparent and it is very important for the people of this country, especially from the finance and banking sector, to get themselves involved,” Ain said.
“The process has now started and we are formally inviting the people in the finance and banking sector, other commentators, interested parties and the public to the process on assessment.
“We are looking forward to seeing a lot of submissions come in and this process starts effectively today (Friday).”
KSL is seeking authorisation from ICCC to acquire 89.91 per cent of Westpac PNG Ltd.
According to the ICCC, the proposed acquisition has met the threshold required under section 81 of the ICCC Act for mandatory notification and seeking approval from ICCC to proceed with the acquisition.
Ain said that the authorisation process had nothing to do with ICCC deciding who buys.
“This is something that ICCC does not or is not required by law to do this,” he said.
“It’s outside of the ICCC’s role.”