Entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and other business sector experts told FOX News Digital that the Biden administration's aggressive regulatory stance toward large companies is hindering growth.
Albertsons announced earlier this week that fellow grocery store The chain has abandoned a $25 million merger with Kroger. This challenge, and the eventual failure of the merger, is the latest example of the Biden administration's attacks on big business.
“We literally have acquisition offers from strategic buyers, and when we go to our lawyers, they say, 'No way, no, the FTC will definitely flag this, and you're going to get thousands of You're going to be punished for spending $1,000,000.''I spent a year in bureaucratic hell answering questions in court,'' said the former CEO, who has been involved in multiple mergers and acquisitions transactions and maintains stakes in many startup companies. said Rabin Gandhi, a venture capitalist.
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“Lena Khan has made it clear that even mid-market M&A is a vehicle for monopoly. And if you, like me, have ever started and sold a business, you know that is ridiculous. You should know.”
The Federal Trade Commission headquarters is seen in Washington, DC on November 18th.
The chilling effect Gandhi described is echoed by other analysts, who say the Biden administration's rhetoric and policies are causing companies to abandon deals or renew deals in the face of FTC and Justice Department antitrust concerns. They say they need to solve problems themselves by building new ones. Ann analysis Under the Biden administration, the vast majority of all transactions in which the government requested details from companies about proposed mergers (nearly three-quarters) were subject to enforcement actions, according to a study by international law firm Morgan Lewis.
“America wants another option,” Cardone Capital CEO Grant Cardone said. “The idea that Joe Biden is trying to make the world more competitive is a red herring.”
Mr. Cardone also expressed frustration with the regulatory battle with the Biden administration, noting that regulations are “making it almost impossible for people to do business.”
Cardone Capital CEO Grant Cardone attended Gateway Celebrity Fight Night 2024 on April 27 in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Several other business leaders, venture capitalists and people familiar with mergers and acquisitions echoed Mr. Gandhi and Mr. Cardone's shared concern that business growth is being held back.
“The FTC's aggressive antitrust enforcement under the Biden administration has significantly slowed M&A activity, especially in the tech space,” said Kison Patel, a financial tech entrepreneur and host of the M&A podcast M&A Science. speak “For example, one Fortune 10 technology company reduced its number of deals from 30 to fewer than five.”
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Armen Martin, a veteran mergers and acquisitions lawyer, added that in speaking with venture capitalists, he has heard optimism about Khan's departure from the FTC. Her successor will be Andrew Ferguson, who was nominated by President-elect Trump to head the FTC.
“We're going to see a lot more M&A activity under Trump because companies are confident that the government won't be involved,” Martin said.
President Trump uses golden scissors to cut red tape tied between two stacks of paper representing government regulations from the 1960s and current regulations in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on December 14, 2017. have.
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Meanwhile, FTC Spokesman Douglas Farrar said in a statement to Fox News Digital that the recently blocked grocery store merger is a sign that “robust, reality-based antitrust enforcement will provide real support to consumers, workers, and small businesses.” “We have made it clear that we will bring results.”
“Today's victory will protect competition in the grocery market and prevent further price increases,” he added.
