Canada’s Competition Bureau will today open its prosecution of the world’s two major credit card companies, Visa and MasterCard, in a case that it hopes will serve as a positive bellwether for future case litigation.

Maple Group has extended its bid for TMX Group after concessions reached with provincial regulators renewed the possibility that the deal will be passed by Canada’s Competition Bureau.

As the International Competition Network comes closer to a multi-agency framework for merger review, counsel have been urged by the heads of Canada and Japan’s competition agencies not to prioritise the largest jurisdictions when filing a merger, calling it a very risky strategy. Clare Bolton in Rio de Janeiro.

Canada’s Competition Bureau has obtained a guilty plea from the country’s largest oil company in an investigation over collusion to fix the price of petrol. In a separate bureau probe, five individuals and a cooperative have also pleaded guilty to fixing petrol prices in Quebec.

An Ontario resident has filed a class action lawsuit seeking C$5 million in damages from petrol companies that have pleaded guilty to conspiring to fix prices.

Glencore yesterday announced plans to acquire global agri-business Viterra for C$6.1 billion, a deal that will potentially require regulatory approval in Canada, Australia and Europe.

Canada’s largest telecoms company, Bell Canada Enterprises, has announced plans to acquire television company Astral Media, in a deal that will require approval from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and Competition Bureau.

Norton Rose Canada has promoted competition specialist Kevin Ackhurst to partner in the firm’s Toronto office.

US mining group Molycorp last week announced plans to acquire Canadian rare earth processor Neo Material Technologies for C$1.3 billion (€996 million). The merger will combine the owner of the largest rare-earth deposit outside of China with a leading rare earth processing technology company.

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is challenging Canada’s Competition Bureau’s request for information on the bank’s role in its Libor investigation.

TPG Technology has sued Canada’s Competition Bureau for defamation over the authority’s public announcements in an antitrust investigation of the company.

Melanie Aitken, commissioner of competition at Canada’s Competition Bureau, says the enforcer plans to close four of its legacy cartel cases by 1 April if there is no further progress in the investigations. Ron Knox in Vancouver

Canadian foam manufacturers became the first companies convicted under the amended conspiracy provisions in Canada's Competition Act last week when they were hit with a C$12.5 million (€9.7 million) fine for operating a cartel.

McMillan has promoted Casey Halladay to partner in its Toronto antitrust practice