| FTC. |
A federal agency charged with enforcing antitrust legislation and preventing false advertising, among other duties.
Federal Trade Commission - FTC
An independent federal agency whose main goals are to protect consumers and to ensure a strong competitive market by enforcing a variety of consumer protection and antitrust laws. These laws guard against harmful business practices and protect the market from anti-competitive practices such as large mergers and price-fixing conspiracies.
Investopedia Commentary
The Federal Trade Commission deals with complaints that are filed regarding unfair business practices such as scams, deceptive advertising and monopolistic practices. It reviews these complaints to determine if businesses are in fact engaging in harmful practices. The FTC is also responsible for reviewing mergers in the market to ensure that they do not hurt competition in the market and potentially harm consumers. Generally speaking, the FTC does not have the ability to directly enforce its rulings, but it can go to the courts to have them enforced.
Related Links
Antitrust Defined
Investment Scams Tutorial
Policing The Securities Market: An Overview Of The SEC
See also: Antitrust, Monopoly, Oligopoly, Ponzi Scheme, Price Fixing, Pyramid Scheme
Also spelled: FTCFTC