Lina Khan, who formerly served as the head of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the previous President, announced her resignation from the commission in the upcoming weeks in a memo to staff.
During her term, Khan vigorously opposed numerous mergers, striving to safeguard consumers and workers from potential disadvantages caused by dominant corporations.
Under the Biden administration, Khan's FTC took legal action against Amazon, initiated an investigation into Microsoft, and obtained court rulings blocking Kroger's acquisition of Albertsons and that of handbag makers Tapestry and Capri.
Being the youngest individual to lead the U.S. consumer protection and antitrust body, Khan rose to prominence in 2017 by asserting that Amazon had accumulated monopolistic power through undercutting competitor prices and exploiting consumer data.
In the shift from previous legal norms, Khan pointed out that tech giants like Amazon had largely evaded scrutiny due to a consensus from the 1970s that anti-competitive practices were solely objectionable if they led to increased consumer prices.
During the initial Trump administration, antitrust regulators began targeting major tech firms, suing Google and Facebook, now known as Meta Platforms.
Republican Commissioner Andrew Ferguson assumed leadership on Monday with Trump's appointment. Upon Khan's departure, the FTC faces a temporary impasse with two Republican and two Democratic commissioners, pending the approval of Mark Meador as the fifth member, considered a pro-enforcement advocate due to his background at the FTC and the Department of Justice.
Some of Khan's initiatives sparked controversy, such as a court ruling that implemented a broad ban on worker noncompete agreements to empower employees to start their own ventures and encourage employers to compete more fervently for labor.
Challenges in court also await a proposed regulation demanding subscription services to provide certain features.
Ferguson and fellow Republican Melissa Holyoak dissented on these regulations and a recent case against a company that revived an inactive price discrimination law.
A source informed Reuters that Khan intends to fulfill her remaining duties as a commissioner, which include finalizing document retention, records management as mandated by law, and addressing other administrative matters.