Top US trade regulators released a joint statement committing to an examination of whether the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) should be tougher on proposed mergers following President Joe Biden’s issuance of an executive order calling for greater scrutiny of corporate deals and other regulatory changes.
“We must ensure that the merger guidelines reflect current economic realities and empirical learning and that they guide enforcers to review mergers with the skepticism the law demands,” Commission Chair Lina Khan and Acting Assistant Attorney General of the DOJ Antitrust Division Richard A. Powers said in the joint statement. “The current guidelines deserve a hard look to determine whether they are overly permissive. We plan soon to jointly launch a review of our merger guidelines with the goal of updating them to reflect a rigorous analytical approach consistent with applicable law.”
Biden’s Friday, July 9, executive order called for a number of changes aimed at what the president said was a goal of increasing competition in various sectors of the U.S. economy.
The joint statement from the FTC and DOJ officials seems to relate to a portion of the executive order that stated, in part, “It is also the policy of my administration to enforce the antitrust laws to meet the challenges posed by new industries and technologies, including the rise of the dominant internet platforms, especially as they stem from serial mergers, the acquisition of nascent competitors, the aggregation of data, unfair competition in attention markets, the surveillance of users, and the presence of network effects.”
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
Apple Prevails in Dismissal of Crypto-Payment Antitrust Lawsuit
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Amazon Fined in Poland for Misleading Customers
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Credit Card Rewards Under Threat as Visa, Mastercard Settlement Impacts Swipe Fees
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
UK Fashion Giants Commit to Honest Environmental Claims
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Former Traders Lose Appeal Against Libor Rigging Conviction
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Real Estate & Antitrust
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Systematic National Evidence of Steering by Real Estate Agents
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Compliance Now! Actionable Antitrust Advice for the Residential Real Estate Industry
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Real Estate Commissions: Some Insights from the Economics of Multi-Sided Platforms
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
New Ideas for Promoting Real Estate Brokerage Price Competition
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI