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Konrad K Häuptli

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Konrad Häuptli graduated from the University of Berne, qualified as an attorney-at-law and was admitted to the Bar of the Canton of Berne. He joined HSBC in 2002 after working with Swiss Re for over 20 years. He then went on to work for KENDRIS in 2016 after retiring as former CEO of HSBC’s Trust Companies in Switzerland. Konrad Häuptli is a member of the Advisory Board of the Swiss Association of Trust Companies (SATC) and is also a member of mixed expert groups representing SATC. He has been managing family assets and has been involved in entrepreneurial activities, board assignments as well as private equity investments.
USD 1 Billion Fine: EU Imposes Record Penalty on Google

by Konrad K Häuptli | Jul 24, 2026 | Regulatory

k-flash audio commentUSD 1 Billion Fine: EU Imposes Record Penalty on Google
k-flash audio commentUSD 1 Billion Fine: EU Imposes Record Penalty on Google

The case

Google has been hit with a record € 890 million (approximately USD 1 billion) fine by the European Union.

Source: European Commission 

The commentary

The fine marks the EU’s first financial penalty against Google under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which entered into force in 2024. It is the largest fine imposed under this legislation to date. The European Commission has imposed two separate penalties of € 460 million and € 430 million respectively from Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet.

The EU alleged that Google had abused its market power in several ways: In online search, the company was accused of giving preferential treatment to its own services, resulting in the larger of the two penalties. Further, Google was accused of restricting app developers from directing users to cheaper or alternative ways of downloading apps outside the Google Play Store.

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