Washington, D.C. — In response to a new announcement from the Department of Justice Antitrust Division withdrawing the 1995 Bank Merger Guidelines and making clear that the 2023 Merger Guidelines apply to the banking industry, the American Economic Liberties Project released the following statement.

“It’s great to see that after decades of rubber-stamping bank mergers, enforcers are making clear that they have a strong role to play in reining in bank consolidation,” said Morgan Harper, Director of Policy and Advocacy at the American Economic Liberties Project. “Years of rampant bank mergers have led to reduced competition, widespread branch closures, job losses, and financial instability, harming rural and underserved communities that rely on small local banks for affordable financial products and loans, and the U.S. economy overall. By updating the outdated 1995 bank merger guidelines, the Antitrust Division is—in a transparent way—reflecting modern market realities, and reinforcing that they have authority over the industry and intend to use it. We encourage the DOJ swiftly apply this updated guidance to recommend the banking regulators block harmful bank mega-mergers like the pending Capital One-Discover deal.”

The DOJ’s announcement comes in conjunction with a recent vote from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to implement stricter guidelines when reviewing bank merges, requiring additional data during a transaction and taking a broader look at the would-be deal’s impact on geographic considerations.

In a speech at Brookings Institution in June 2023, AAG Jonathan Kanter outlined how the Antitrust Division intended to update its bank merger guidance, while also making clear that their enforcement will be defined by the facts and law first and foremost. As Kanter said, “it is appropriate for us to reassess whether the prevailing approach to bank merger enforcement is fit for purpose given current market realities. Asking whether the factual and economic assumptions underlying the 1995 Guidelines are adequate to measure and assess the many different dimensions of competition that exist today is the responsible course of action.”

Read Economic Liberties’ report, Revitalizing Bank Merger Enforcement To Restore Competition and Fairness in Banking, to learn more.

Learn more about Economic Liberties here.

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The American Economic Liberties Project works to ensure America’s system of commerce is structured to advance, rather than undermine, economic liberty, fair commerce, and a secure, inclusive democracy. Economic Liberties believes true economic liberty means entrepreneurs and businesses large and small succeed on the merits of their ideas and hard work; commerce empowers consumers, workers, farmers, and engineers instead of subjecting them to discrimination and abuse from financiers and monopolists; foreign trade arrangements support domestic security and democracy; and wealth is broadly distributed to support equitable political power.