- CEOs are waiting to see how the Federal Trade Commission does Under President Trump, unlike the Biden administration, the lightweight enforcement companies have so far not been able to achieve. The FTC is currently suing Meta in cases of antitrust. Meanwhile, Chairman Andrew Ferguson said the agency would do so. I’ll stick to The more stringent merger framework of the FTC, established under Biden, underscored the need for stability.
Former Federal Trade Commissioner Christine Wilson has aired more of her opinions on former committee chair Lina Kahn. In his remarks last week, Wilson said he believes that Kern took it. An interventionist approachusing procedural mechanisms that delay or block more mergers. It was Wilson’s latest salvo after her Resignation From the 2023 FTC, Khan claimed that he “lightly corned and stood by” FTC staff, claiming a decrease in enforcement action.
“Chairman Khan really believed that all mergers were bad,” he said. WilsonHe is currently a partner at the law firm Freshfields. “She used what I call procedural shenanigans. Essentially, she uses all the procedural levers available to cool down M&A activities.”
Wilson interviewed FTC Commissioner Melissa Holyoak, sitting Berkle Lace Spring Forum for M&A And last week, the San Francisco executive office. Holyoak was asked how the FTC under the current administration differed from the last one. One of the FTCs roleand to consider proposed acquisitions and mergers that will affect US commerce and be valued at over $101 million on antitrust issues. While President Trump’s administration was predicted to be more business-friendly in the trading and M&A sector, CEOs and startups are still waiting to see how the newly organized FTC will move in the coming months and what it means to grow, acquisitions, and the overall appetite of transactions.
Wilson asked whether there are “particularly bad” practices that previously organized FTCs engaged in, and whether businesses can “reliably trust the Trump administration to play straight and see the incidents about merit.”
Holyoak gained a different tone in her response, identifying “lack of communication” and lack of transparency between the FTC and the company, but said it was her priority to bring it back to the merger review process.
Khan did not reply to requests for comment, but a former FTC official who served under Khan said “Committee Wilson’s accusations were not in shocking contact with reality.”
Wall Street Journal It has been reported The dealer is still used to the new FTC and is waiting for clearer indications about FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson’s approach. He revealed this in February Note FTC and DOJ Joint 2023 Merger Guidelines It is certainly a framework that guides institutional merger review analysis, and dashingly hopes that the FTC could loosen its reins from the Biden-era framework. Ferguson spoke to an audience this month packed with executives who don’t think America should return to the “open season” of M&A. WSJ It has been reported.
Meanwhile, Gail Slater, the leader of DOJ’s antitrust division, also raised concerns about the trading environment. Financial Times It has been reported. Slater previously expressed concern about being too focused on certain industries, saying enforcement should be based on a direct financial impact on Americans.
Additionally, CEOs and executives continue to worry that Trump will be able to maneuver antitrust cases in a way that creates greater uncertainty and pours more cold water into the M&A operating environment. That is in contrast to former chairman Lina Khan’s FTC. ft This was reported, but this was more predictable.
February marked the first time in more than two years that more than $10 billion has not been announced worldwide. This turned back in March with a $32 billion deal to buy Wiz, but so far April has been quiet.
In 2019, the number of transactions has declined by 19%. WSJ.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.
