378 The Counter


    The headlines were relentless. Every major news outlet echoed the same sentiment: "Is Reyes Corporation a Monopoly?"


    Michael sat at his desk, his eyes fixed on the reports flooding in from his PR team. The media smear campaign was just the beginning. Hispetitors weren''t just ying the media game—they had turned to something far more dangerous: government regtion.


    Juliet burst into his office once again, this time holding a stack of legal documents. Her expression was grim.


    "They''ve done it," she said, handing over the papers. "The Philippine Competition Commission hasunched an anti-trust investigation into Reyes Corporation. They''re iming we''re viting the fairpetitionw."


    Michael nced at the documents in Juliet''s hand, his mind already piecing together the next steps.


    "The Philippine Competition Commission?" Michael repeated, frowning. "Tell me exactly what we''re dealing with."


    Juliet took a deep breath, ready to exin. "The Philippine Competition Commission, or PCC, is the government body responsible for promoting and maintaining fairpetition in the market. Their job is to prevent monopolies, price-fixing, and any kind of antipetitive practices that can harm consumers or small businesses. They have the authority to investigatepanies like ours if they believe we''re using our size or influence to stiflepetition."


    Michael''s expression darkened as he leaned back in his chair. "So, they''re saying Reyes Corporation is too big, too powerful, and we''re not giving anyone else a fair chance."


    "Exactly," Juliet replied. "The PCC can impose heavy fines, require us to divest some of our business units, or, in the worst-case scenario, even force us to break up thepany if they think we''re acting like a monopoly."


    Michael''s jaw tightened. He had heard aboutpanies being investigated by the PCC before. Most had been caught off-guard, and the investigations dragged their business down for years, even if they didn''t end up facing penalties.He knew this wasn''t the first time the Philippine Competition Commission had gone afterrgepanies, and it certainly wouldn''t be thest.


    "They''ve done this before," Michael muttered. "Who have they targeted in the past?"


    Juliet nodded, anticipating his question. "There have been several high-profile cases. For example, the PCC onceunched an investigation into the telmunications sector. They used PLDT and Globe Tel of trying to create a duopoly when they bought out the telmunications assets of San Miguel Corporation."


    Michael remembered the case. It was a drawn-out legal battle that put the spotlight on two of the country''s biggest yers. "I remember that. The PCC wanted to block the deal, saying it would reducepetition in the industry."


    "Exactly," Juliet continued. "It took years for PLDT and Globe to resolve the issue, and in the end, they had to agree to certain conditions before the deal could push through. But the investigation slowed down their operations, and they had to deal with heavy scrutiny from regtors."


    Michael nodded, understanding the strategy hispetitors were using. "So, they''re hoping to tie us up in something simr. Create enough noise to slow us down, even if we''re not viting anyws."


    "That''s right," Juliet replied. "And there was another case with Urban Deca Homes, owned by 8990 Holdings. The PCC fined them for imposing an exclusive inte service provider on residents, which vitedpetition rules. It wasn''t as high-profile as the PLDT-Globe case, but it showed that the PCC is willing to go after anypany, big or small, if they see antipetitive behavior."


    Michael frowned. "What was the penalty?" @@novelbin@@


    "They were fined over 27 million pesos," Juliet said. "Not a huge amount, but the damage to their reputation was significant. The PCC made it clear that they won''t tolerate unfairpetition practices."


    Michael stood up, pacing his office. "So, we''re looking at either a drawn-out investigation, like with PLDT and Globe, or fines and bad press, like Urban Deca. Either way, they''re trying to hurt us, if not financially, then in terms of reputation."


    Juliet nodded. "That''s the y. The PCC doesn''t need to bring us down all at once. Even just the investigation will slow our momentum."


    Michael stopped pacing, his mind racing. "We''ll cooperate with the investigation, but we''ll also go on the offensive. We''ve done nothing wrong, and we''ve only improvedpetition in every sector we''ve entered."


    Juliet agreed. "We''ll show the


    Juliet agreed. "We''ll show them that we''re not stiflingpetition, we''re creating it. Just like in the energy sector, where our renewable energy projects have pushed traditional power providers to modernize. And in healthcare, our Medipod has forced otherpanies to innovate faster than they ever would have."


    Michael''s expression hardened. "We''re not the problem. We''re the solution. Let''s make sure the public and the PCC understand that. Now back at the topic at hand, what does the PCC wants from us again?"


    "Like I said earlier, they haveunched an anti-trust investigation," Juliet continued. "They''re asking for full ess to our financial records, details on our market share in various sectors, and an exnation of how we''ve structured our recent acquisitions, including GCash. They''re looking for anything they can use to im we''re abusing our position in the market."


    Michael exhaled sharply. "So they want tob through everything we''ve built, hoping to find cracks they can exploit."


    "Exactly," Juliet nodded. "They''re specifically interested in how we''ve integrated GCash with Reyes Bank and whether that merger limitspetition in the digital banking sector. They''re also looking into our partnerships in renewable energy, to see if we''re creating barriers for smaller yers."


    "We''ve always yed by the rules. But if they''re determined to find something, they''ll stretch the definition of what''s antipetitive."


    Juliet frowned, flipping through the documents. "That''s what makes this so dangerous. They don''t need proof that we''ve done anything wrong. Just the investigation itself will make people question whether we''re getting too big, too powerful."


    Michael crossed his arms. "Then we make our case clear. Reyes Corporation has expanded because we innovate. We''ve pushed every industry we''ve entered to do better. And we haven''t shut out anyone—we''ve forced them topete at a higher level."


    Juliet nodded in agreement. "We can put that narrative out there. But we need more than just PR. The legal team is already working on a formal response to the PCC. We''ll need to provide them with every document they ask for, but we''ll also make sure they see how Reyes Corporation has improvedpetition, not killed it."


    "Good," Michael said firmly. "We''ll cooperate, but we won''t let them drag this out forever. I want this investigation resolved as quickly as possible. Get our legal team to keep the pressure on the PCC to move fast. And I want our PR team to highlight every job we''ve created, every industry we''ve revitalized."


    Juliet nodded and added, "We''ll also need to start preparing for the possibility of public hearings or a Senate inquiry. If this esctes, they might call you in to testify."


    Michael''s jaw clenched. "If they do, I''ll be ready. They want to paint me as the bad guy. But we''ll make sure the public sees the truth."