-stage cartel formation experiment where multiple ringleaders may emerge. Although theory predicts that cartels will always be …This paper experimentally analyzes the cartel coordination challenge induced by the discrimination of cartel … ringleaders in leniency policies. Ringleaders often take a leading role in the coordination and formation of a cartel. A leniency …

Cartels can severely harm social welfare. Competition authorities introduced leniency rules to destabilize existing … cartels and hinder the formation of new ones. Empirically, it is difficult to judge the success of these measures because … functioning cartels are unobservable. Existing experimental studies confirm that a leniency rule indeed reduces cartelization. We …