2025 ACM Annual Report: impactful market oversight requires a broad perspective

Today, the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) publishes its 2025 Annual Report. In the past year, ACM conducted various broad market investigations, including one into the market for vets. These market investigations offer insight into how markets work, identify bottlenecks, and propose solutions. ACM launched five market investigations, some of which are still ongoing. In 2025, ACM focused in particular on the digital economy, the energy transition, and the sustainability transition.

Simultaneously with the annual report, ACM also publishes the annual legislative letter, in which ACM gives the Dutch legislature advice about new and existing rules. In that context, ACM assesses whether the rules still effectively serve their purposes, and whether the societal benefits are proportionate to the administrative burden on businesses as well as the regulatory costs. Effective rules are essential for well-functioning markets.

Martijn Snoep, Chairman of the Board of ACM, says: “In 2025, much changed for ACM, both in the outside world as well as within our own organization. Geopolitical developments had a major impact on markets. Changes and unpredictability have become a given now. The common thread in our oversight efforts is and remains striving for the largest possible impact on the broad prosperity in the Netherlands. Oversight is a continuous process, in which we adapt to new developments, and work in an open, independent, and resourceful manner.”

Market investigations

In 2025, ACM paid special attention to broad, general market investigations to identify market problems. ACM launched investigations into the market for veterinary services for pets, the prices for fixed broadband, the evolution of the hydrogen market, computer-controlled consumer prices, and prices in supermarkets. In this way, ACM, as a mission-driven regulator, carries out its duty of conducting oversight over the proper functioning of markets, even without a suspicion of violation of the rules. In the course of 2025, ACM published the most important findings of some of these market investigations, and made recommendations to the Dutch legislature. In its market investigation into verterinary services for pets, ACM argued that pet owners be given better protection against the commercialization of veterinary services.

The digital economy, the energy transition, and the sustainability transition

In addition to its regular oversight duties, ACM focused in 2025 on the digital economy, the energy transition, and the sustainability transition. ACM placed emphasis on enforcement of new European digital legislation, the protection of online users, and on tackling deception and abuse of dominance in digital markets. For example, ACM in collaboration with the European Commission launched an investigation into Snapchat in connection with the illegal trade in vapes on the platform. In 2025, ACM took measures for reducing grid congestion and for stimulating flexible grid utilization. ACM ensured that the prioritization of projects that contribute to major social objectives in getting connected to the grid remains possible thanks to a new prioritization framework. System operators, trade associations, and ACM signed a definitive agreement on new rules for system operators, in order to be able to tackle the problems on the congested grid. ACM also continued to fight misleading claims made by companies regarding sustainability efforts, with a special focus on the food sector. Finally, ACM positively assessed various sustainability initiatives by companies regarding collaborations within the competition rules.

Strengthening the organization

Mission-driven oversight puts demands on ACM as an organization. In other words, the mission is central, not the tools that ACM uses in its oversight. Oversight is more than just imposing fines. In 2025, ACM drew up a new regulatory vision. This vision discusses all the tools in ACM’s toolkit, and was published in 2026. In 2025, ACM further strengthened its organization, particularly with regard to corporate services and information services. ACM is building towards a solid organization that is ready for the future, for example by evolving into an autonomous administrative authority (in Dutch: zelfstandig bestuursorgaan, or ZBO) with its own legal personality, similar to the organizational structure of other regulators.

See also

• 2025 ACM Annual Report (in Dutch. An English translation will be published soon)
• 2026 ACM Legislative Letter (in Dutch)
• ACM Regulatory Vision (in Dutch)
• ACM in 2025 to launch five new broad investigations into market problems | ACM
• ACM Market Investigations (in Dutch)