Office of Competition in Poland Initiates Proceedings against PayPal

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, or UOKiK, Poland's competition regulator, has launched an investigation into PayPal's usage of potentially illegal contractual clauses.

UOKiK said it might sanction PayPal up to 10% of its annual revenue if it finds problems with the payment giant's user agreement. The watchdog objects to three aspects of the agreement: a list of prohibited conduct, a list of sanctions, and a prohibition on utilizing a blocked or suspended account.

According to the statement, "In the opinion of the President of the Office, the content contained in this document may be contrary to good practices and lead to gross disproportion of rights and obligations between the consumer and the entrepreneur."

UOKiK says that prohibited activities have been described "imprecisely". In a statement given to Reuters, PayPal says it "remains deeply committed to its compliance obligations" and works closely with regulators.