Last week, the U.S. Senate confirmed the nomination of Alvaro Bedoya to fill the open fifth Commissioner seat on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The confirmation fills the vacancy left when Rohit Chopra resigned in October 2021 to head the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Because the FTC can only take action upon the vote of a majority of the Commissioners, the filling of the fifth seat is seen as key to advancing Chairwoman Lina Kahn’s agenda.

Bedoya is known for his work related to privacy and data security, as he is the founding director of the Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown Law. He joins the FTC as it is reviewing the horizontal and vertical merger guidelines, so his appointment likely will have a significant impact on the outcome of that review and the corresponding competition enforcement.