Antitrust, Private Equity & Venture Capital

Abstract

The private equity and venture capital markets used to be backwaters of antitrust. PE and VC firms were seen as benign or even pro-competitive forces. But in recent years, enforcers and scholars have started to scrutinize PE acquisitions, PE club deals, and PE managers who serve on interlocking directorates. And at the same time, some have argued that incumbent tech companies are acquiring venture-backed startups to choke off nascent competitors. In this Chapter, we explore how PE and VC firms, their portfolio companies, and the companies that acquire their portfolio companies might harm competition. And we consider proposals to reform antitrust law in response. Our goal is to provide context to these debates and identify open questions for future research.

Keywords: antitrust, venture capital, private equity

JEL Classification: K21