Lina Khan, the youngest chair of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), announced her resignation in a staff memo, effective in the coming weeks. Appointed under President Joe Biden, Khan became known for her aggressive enforcement of antitrust laws, challenging major mergers and investigating corporate giants like Amazon and Microsoft.
During her tenure, the FTC sued Amazon, investigated Microsoft, and blocked high-profile deals, including Kroger’s $25 billion bid for Albertsons and an $8.5 billion merger between Tapestry and Capri. Khan gained prominence in 2017 with a paper critiquing Amazon’s monopolistic practices, which helped shift antitrust focus beyond consumer pricing to corporate dominance and worker impacts.
Republican Andrew Ferguson assumed chairmanship on Monday, creating a temporary partisan stalemate at the FTC. Once the Senate confirms Mark Meador, a pro-enforcement Republican nominee, the GOP will hold a majority on the five-member commission.
Some of Khan’s initiatives, including bans on worker noncompete clauses and a rule simplifying subscription cancellations, faced court challenges. Republican commissioners Andrew Ferguson and Melissa Holyoak often opposed her agenda.
Khan plans to focus on administrative tasks and document retention before departing. Her exit marks the end of a pivotal era in U.S. antitrust enforcement.
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