Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund sent a letter commending the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice for developing a robust, accessible update to the merger guidelines
New study by the American Antitrust Institute and Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund calls attention to the growing presence of private equity ownership in the home healthcare sector.
Amid growing concern about corporate consolidation, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund are leading a letter calling for the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to reject a proposed merger between TD Bank and First Horizon Bank.
At long last, private equity is getting the attention it deserves from antitrust authorities as a force for consolidation, higher prices, and less consumer choice.
AFREF, joined by the Center for Economic Policy and Research and United for Respect, sent a comment letter responding to the FTC and DOJ’s request for information on merger enforcement. The letter calls on the agencies to to closely scrutinize and create presumptions to challenge acquisitions that employ leveraged buyouts and techniques like it.
The federal authorities should halt all bank merger approvals until they strengthen the outdated guidelines that govern whether financial institutions can combine, according to a letter delivered today by 30 public interest organizations.
AFREF led a letter to regulators stating that the laissez-faire stance adopted by the Department of Justice and the federal bank regulators and current merger guidelines have hurt small businesses, community banks, and households, especially those in BIPOC communities. The letter urges regulators to temporarily halt consideration of pending bank mergers until the DOJ and banking agencies adopt a plan that strengthens the guidelines to protect consumers.
Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund submitted a comment letter asking the Department of Justice to protect the public interest from ever larger banks exercising market power to impose higher costs on consumers, reduce the volume or quality of banking services, and from becoming so large that they pose a risk to the entire financial system and real economy.