CCI Orders Trustees' Association, Three Others To Stop Collective Fee Fixing For Debenture Trustee Services

The Competition Commission of India has found that the Trustees' Association of India, IDBI Trusteeship Services Limited, Axis Trustee Services Limited, and SBI CAP Trustee Company Limited engaged in anti-competitive conduct by collectively fixing a benchmark price for debenture trusteeship services.

The Commission, in an order dated September 2, 2026, directed the four entities to cease and desist from the conduct. Certain officials of these entities were also found liable under the Competition Act.

The Commission found that the benchmark price for providing debenture trusteeship services was fixed during the financial years 2020-21 and 2021-22. Its findings were based on the minutes of meetings of the Trustees' Association of India and certain email exchanges.

It observed that the collective fixing of a minimum price or fee prevented debenture trustees from making independent commercial decisions.

“Such collective fixing of minimum price/fee by Trustees' Association of India, for the provision of debenture trusteeship services, and other follow-on actions prevented independent commercial decision making by the debenture trustees and amounted to cartelisation in terms of the provisions of the Act,” the Commission held.

The Commission further found that the conduct amounted to limiting and controlling the supply or market for debenture trusteeship services. Members as well as non-members of the Trustees' Association of India were dictated not to provide services to issuers of debentures below the benchmark fee, it observed.

Certain officials of the four entities were also found liable under the Competition Act. However, the Commission did not impose any monetary penalty after taking mitigating factors into account.

The Commission directed the entities and the individuals found liable to cease and desist from the anti-competitive conduct.