The nation's competition watchdog has defended its role in the downfall of childcare provider ABC Learning.
It was not up the regulator to consider whether the company's ambitious acquisition program would send it broke, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Graeme Samuel said.
"We did stop ABC making a whole lot of acquisitions and forced them to sell a number of centres that they acquired," he told ABC Television, adding the commission's role was about preventing the lessening of competition.
The commission, when considering an acquisition, could not look at whether a company could go broke or whether it would cause dislocation in the industry.
"That's not our role, it can't possibly be our role."