Need Antitrust Clearance? Get Ready For More Red Tape
President Barack Obama last month ordered federal agencies to review business rules already on the books with an eye toward eliminating “outdated regulations that stifle job creation and make our economy less competitive,” according to his recent opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal. This will surely lead to some good. But given the lengthening roll of red tape facing financial sponsors (headlined by requirement to register as investment advisers), it must have been tough for them not to stifle a sarcastic chuckle. Indeed, in a relatively little noted action last summer, the Federal Trade Commission proposed changes to its Hart-Scott-Rodino pre-merger notification rules to give it more information upfront about buyouts and other M&A deals to determine if they raise antitrust concerns.
