Vertical mergers, unlike more-litigated horizontal mergers, are governed by few guidelines from antitrust regulatory organizations and, until recently, had never been challenged in federal court. The approval of a vertical merger between AT&T and Time Warner (“The Merger”), despite protests from the Antitrust Department of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), has shed some light on merger control rules for vertical mergers. This post provides an overview of: (1) vertical merger laws; (2) The Merger; and (3) the governing principles that have emerged since the approval of the AT&T transaction. (Noah Brumfield, Antitrust & Trade Regulation Report (BNA)).
Read MoreFollowing the appointment of Chairman Joseph Simons to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), large tech companies including Google, Facebook, and Amazon should expect tougher enforcement against anti-competitive behavior. In recent years, the FTC has become increasingly concerned that these large tech companies may be violating antitrust law and limiting competition in the market by acquiring small startups or otherwise vertically integrating.
Simons’ appointment comes at a time when mega-mergers among technology companies are commonplace.
Read MoreWith the revolutionary technology known as blockchain quickly spreading across the globe, regulators are struggling to find an ideal balance between regulation and innovation. The critical question is whether cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (“ICOs”) are unique enough to warrant the creation of a new categories or if they should be considered securities and therefore subject to existing securities laws and requirements. Because new cryptocurrencies do not require government backing, many leaders in the cryptocurrency arena fear additional regulatory delay, or excessive regulations, will lead many cryptocurrency founders to take their innovation and multibillion dollar businesses overseas to countries with more established and favorable regulations (Kate Rooney, CNBC).
Read MoreThe emergence of cryptocurrency and blockchain poses questions for financial regulators around the world. Regulators are struggling to understand both where cryptocurrency fits within their regulatory framework and how to set up parameters for transparency and investor integrity. (Bob Pisani, CNBC). Recently, American regulators increased scrutiny for broker-dealers working with cryptocurrency. (Benjamin Bain, Bloomberg). Financial powers in other countries are also responding individually to the crypto-movement, and France exemplifies a recent response.
Read MoreIn SEC v. Cade, No. 2:18-cv-01323-JEO (N.D. Ala. Aug. 17, 2018), the SEC filed an initial complaint against Catlin Cade (“defendant”) alleging a violation of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”) and SEC Rule 10b-5 by trading shares of Golden Enterprises, Inc. (“Golden”) on the basis of material nonpublic information.
According to the allegations, a director of Golden learned of nonpublic information pertaining to a contemplated merger between Golden and a second company. The director separately owned and controlled a different privately held company (“Director’s Company”)
Last month the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) obtained a permanent officer-and-director and penny stock bar against Tomahawk Exploration LLC founder, David T. Laurance, for perpetrating a fraudulent initial coin offering. (SEC Press Release). On its face, the decision shows the SEC merely enforcing its previous statements that anything resembling a security will be labeled as such and regulated under the Securities Act. The ruling, however, extends the umbrella of SEC oversight to explicitly include “Bounty Programs”—a mainstay practice for many initial offerings.
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