Selection of federal ETPs: should we expect any surprises?

April 08, 2015 19:38

The draft law on the conditions of federal operators of electronic trading platforms selection, developed by the Ministry of Economic Development in 2014, was finally handed over to the Government. Five ETPs authorized to work under the federal law #44-FZ over the next five years will be selected on the basis of this draft. Trades will begin on January 25 next year. At the moment, all government procurement is implemented on ETPs selected in 2010.

According to the document, the selection will be conducted by an expert committee. It will consist of representatives of the Ministry of Economic Development, Ministry of Communications, Federal Treasury and Federal Antimonopoly Service.

Despite the careful study of all the provisions, the document received a negative evaluation in expert circles. Many experts noted the possibility of sharpening the requirements under the existing operators. In particular, it concerns the criterion defining ETP experience. According to the document, the applicant must have at least 500 clients since its inception and more than 500 procedures over the past two years.

The experts also criticized the lack of requirements concerning participants` financial obligations to foreign companies and the exclusive use of domestic equipment. For violation of this provision virtually every applicant may be waived, they believe.

The selection order also prompts questions. Some experts questioned procedure fairness. They stress that the final decision will be done by a group of officials without holding a transparent competition, at the same time there is no guarantee that there will be no affiliates among them.

The importance of qualified operators selection is due not only to their federal status, but also the immediate prospects for ETPs. This year the Ministry of Economic Development plans to convert all government procurement, and from 1 January 2016 — other procurement procedures into an electronic format. According to agency forecasts, the amount of federal procurement in 2015 will be about 10 trillion rubles, while 8 trillion will be conducted through ETPs.