I think a world without mergers would cause a lot of trouble for companies nearing bankruptcy and especially their workforce. When a company is about to fall over because if cashflow issues, another can come in with its reserves and save hundreds or thousands of jobs. That's good for everyone.

I'd argue for a world with only limited possibilities for mergers, where mergers are a last resort rather than the goal of a startup. So many companies these days produce absolutely nothing of value in the hopes of being bought out by a big conglomerate.