(BFM Stock Exchange) – The two prepaid service titles issuers opened in bright red this Friday 28 Mas before reducing their loss. In question: a press article evoking a potential caps of restaurant titles commissions. A measure which is not however discussed by the executive within the framework of the reform envisaged by the Minister of Commerce, Véronique Louwagie, according to our information.

The start of the session was hectic for the actions of Edenred and Pluxee. The two prepaid service issues (restaurant titles, gift titles) opened in bright red this Friday, March 28, losing more than 8.4% for Pluxee and more than 5.5% for Edenred.

The two actions subsequently clearly limited their withdrawal. Around 3:40 p.m., the Pluxee action ceded 3.8% while that of Edenred abandoned 2.5%.

The gray stroke at the opening was probably caused by press information. The echoes wrote in an article published on Friday that “the possibility of capping” the commissions collected by the issuers of restaurant titles with traders was “on the table”, within the framework of the reform envisaged by the Minister of Commerce, Véronique Louwagie.

A first version of this article mentioned a commission rate which could be limited to 2.5% before this rate is deleted in an update of this article.

Contacted by News Bulletin 247, Bercy recalled that discussions were underway with players in the sector as part of this reform. Currently, a cap in the restaurant titles commissions is not a chosen measure, added Bercy.

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The “cupboard monster”

“It is like the ‘closet monster’. It may not exist, the simple fact of mentioning it scares the child (and therefore in the market, editor’s note)”, judges a financial analyst specializing in the sector concerning the drop in courses of Edenred and Pluxee.

“The question is rather whether the current government will last long enough to carry out this reform,” he adds.

Also contacted by News Bulletin 247 Pluxee said that the “Minister (had) announced wish to hand over a roadmap by this summer. Today, discussions are still underway to carry out the reform to an end and with the best consensus”.

“Our desire is to perpetuate the title-restaurant by preserving its original essence, while modernizing it to adapt to new uses. Pluxee has already expressed its desire to see the title-restaurant completely dematerialized,” added the company.

“This measure is a simplification for all stakeholders, particularly traders, thanks to the abolition of administrative constraints linked to paper. Regarding business supplies commissions to traders, they remunerate our service: we develop a network of trading partners who thus increase their customers and turnover thanks to the restaurant title” has developed the company.

“The title-restaurant represents on average more than 15% of the turnover of commercial catering,” said Pluxee.

Edenred, for his part, brought the following comment: “The reform of the title-restaurant, a favorite social advantage of the French, includes measures expected by the entire sector as the total dematerialization of the system and the clarification of its uses”.

“We are convinced that this text will help strengthen the positive effects of the restaurant-restaurant: a measure of equity and support for a quality food for employees at work, and the business volume for restaurateurs and traders,” added the CAC 40 group.

In the fall of 2023, the executive had envisaged a cap of the commissions collected from the merchants by the issuers of restaurants. The Competition Authority had then been questioned for opinion and had made unfavorable recommendations.

The authority believed that a cap “did not constitute the most suitable response” insofar as this measure “would not correct dysfunctions” and could have “counterproductive effects”.