Israel: Lawyer Halperin named Israel’s new Antitrust Chief

Michal Halperin, an attorney who has worked in government and for business, was named Wednesday to head Israel’s Antitrust Authority at a time when the unit is recovering from the controversy over the gas industry and faces a full load of cases.

Halperin, who was appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has also been serving as economy minister, will take over as the authority wrestles with Cellcom Israel’s request to acquire Golan Telecom and the sale of the ailing Mega supermarket chain.

She will also be dealing with a government plan to separate credit card companies from banks, as well as legislation permitting parallel imports and new rules regarding pricing by monopoly companies.

Halperin will also be in the public eye more than her predecessors amid heightened concerns about the high cost of living and business concentration. Her predecessor, David Gilo, resigned last year after he opposed Netanyahu’s plan to allow Noble Energy and Delek Group to retain their lock hold over natural gas.

Full content: Haaretz

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