MAGAZINE
August 2018 Issue
Financier Worldwide Magazine
Click cover to download
(Subscriber-only password access)
Not a subscriber?
Click here to join the FREE mailing list and receive password access
COVER STORY
Breaking down barriers: diversity and inclusion in the C-suite
The path to the C-suite is not an established, linear journey. On the contrary, it is challenging and oblique. This is especially so for women, ethnic minorities, the disabled, and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community...
FEATURES
Merger control authorities appear increasingly willing to exercise their right to block mergers, demonstrating a strong appetite for enforcement. With more deals facing regulatory scrutiny than seemingly ever before, it is vital that merging companies...
Shareholder activism, both disruptive and collaborative, has attracted increased attention in recent years. While previously most commonly associated with the US, activism is now gaining traction in other jurisdictions. To the end of October 2017...
Integrity in third-party due diligence
Understanding exactly who you are doing business with is not only good business practice, increasingly it is a legal necessity. Enforcement standards are changing and companies are being held responsible for the actions of their business...
Dissolving discord: shareholder dispute resolution in the UK
Even the best business partnerships go through rough patches. However, the trick is to not allow difficulties, such as a dispute between shareholders, to erupt into anything inherently damaging. The whys and wherefores of a shareholder dispute can vary...
Ongoing evolution of transfer pricing
Rapid change is the norm in the world of transfer pricing (TP). Uncertainty has also become something of a standard, with populist shocks in the US and the UK, as well as tax overhaul legislation – such as the Organisation for Economic Cooperation...
ROUNDTABLE
Risks facing directors & officers
THE PANELLISTS: Stephen Surgeoner, Dechert LLP; Howard S. Suskin, Jenner & Block; Steven Hadwin, Norton Rose Fulbright LLP; Allen Lanstra, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP; and Deborah Hicks Midanek, Solon Group.
In a world of change that is driving companies to the very limits of their adaptive capacities, risk is a consistent theme, especially for directors & officers. When a disruptive event cascades through interrelated systems – environmental, economic...
SPECIAL REPORT
Technology in business: strategy, compliance & risk
Whatever the size of a business, how it uses technology can have major beneficial impacts – both tangible and intangible – on operations. Among the benefits are quicker communication with customers, an increase in operational efficiency...
FORUM: KYC technology for screening, verification and monitoring
FW moderates a discussion on KYC technology for screening, verification and monitoring between Matt Galvin at AB-InBev, Gwendolyn L. Hassan at CNH Industrial, Derek Ryan at Deloitte LLP, and Jane Grinblat at Reed Smith LLP.
The challenges of the enterprise in the cloud
DLA Piper From one perspective, cloud services are not new. Though it has become fashionable to term something as being provided on a ‘X as a service’ basis, the concept of what used be known as ‘application service provision’ and the wider scope of...
Fieldfisher LLP Artificial intelligence (AI) is set to transform the way many firms work. The World Bank and PwC believe AI threatens 40 percent to 80 percent of current jobs. There should be little doubt that AI is a disruptor like none before. For institutions to harness...
Optimal data commercialisation: transforming raw data into revenue-generating insights
Hogan Lovells It is no secret that businesses have started to amass a wealth of data. And as innovative technologies offer faster communication, greater storage capabilities and more robust analytics, businesses now have the tools to turn their raw data into extremely...
Lessons learned – contract renewals and exit management
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP The expiry and re-bidding of outsourcing contracts provides some harsh lessons about the content of outsourcing contracts that were signed years ago. One of the main issues is about the need for information from the incumbent service provider...
Website consent management solutions under the GDPR
Reed Smith LLP Consent in daily life appears to be simple: it is a yes or no question. Consent in legal terms, and in particular the consent introduced by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), is rather complex. Strict requirements are tied to a valid consent...
Q&A: Global digital transformation
FW moderates a discussion on global digital transformation between Claudia Milbradt at Clifford Chance Deutschland LLP, Deborah Sherry at GE Digital Europe, Russia and CIS, and Andrew Copland-Cale at Siemens AG.
TALKINGpoint
Impact and treatment of IT assets in M&A
FW speaks with Mark Steele at Deloitte LLP about the impact and treatment of IT assets in M&A.
Creating value in private equity carve-outs
FW moderates a discussion on creating value in private equity carve-outs between Mark Bunker, Jason Caulfield, Mo Habbas, Jan Rattay and Jason Spencer at Deloitte LLP.
DEALfront
mergers & acquisitions
Walt Disney Co. won US regulatory approval to acquire Twenty-First Century Fox Inc’s entertainment assets for $71.3bn in late June, marking the latest twist in the ongoing saga of Fox’s sale. As a result of the approval, Disney’s proposed acquisition...
AT&T closes $85bn Time Warner deal
Following months of wrangling and the threat of a lawsuit, AT&T Inc. has finally completed its $85bn acquisition of Time Warner Inc – a deal which combines global media and entertainment leaders Warner Bros., HBO and Turner with AT&T’s leadership...
private equity & venture capital
Platinum Equity to sell WFS for €1.2bn
Divesting itself of an asset which gave it significant momentum in Europe, US private equity firm Platinum Equity has signed a definitive agreement to sell Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) to affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P...
Blackstone exits Intelenet for $1bn
French outsourcing giant Teleperformance is to acquire Indian-based Intelenet Global Services from private equity giant Blackstone in a $1bn deal. The acquisition, which is expected to close by 30 September, pending regulatory approval and other closing...
bankruptcy & corporate restructuring
Poundworld falls into administration
The embattled UK high street suffered another blow in June when discount retailer Poundworld collapsed into administration, giving it temporary protection from its creditors. Deloitte was appointed administrator amid efforts to save the firm...
Once a rising star of the Middle East investment world, humbler times now beckon for Dubai-based private equity firm Abraaj Holdings (AH), as it undergoes a debt restructuring plan under the auspices of court appointed joint provisional liquidators (JPLs)...
PROFESSIONALinsight
Mergers & Acquisitions
Cross-border M&A driving surge in innovative structures
Intertrust Cross-border M&A activity is enjoying a boom, with deal volumes at record highs. However, underlying drivers and increased risk factors have created new challenges in successfully closing deals. The result has been a dramatic increase in the use...
Liabilities arising from Canadian immigration in mergers & acquisitions
BartLAW Mergers & acquisitions (M&A) are notable components of a free market. From a legal perspective, they involve corporate due diligence to ensure that the merger or acquisition is financially prudent, viable and of minimal legal and financial risk...
Finance & Investment
Tax Reform Act provisions impacting the real estate investor
UHY Advisors The most substantial tax law changes in 30 years were enacted by the US Congress in December 2017. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) significantly changes how US entities are taxed. Many foreign investors have held their ownership stake in real estate...
National security investment reviews go global: key policy themes and recommendations
Kirkland & Ellis LLP The historic Western consensus that foreign direct investment (FDI) is an unalloyed good is beginning to crack. In the past year, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, the US and the EU have taken meaningful steps to adopt, upgrade and implement...
Banking & Finance
The disruptive power of FinTech and what it means for boardroom leadership
Penrhyn International Innovation is moving up the corporate agenda in the financial services world and is transforming businesses. Having faced extensive change and upheaval over the past decade, a major current challenge is adapting to and embracing the disruptive potential...
The new Mexican FinTech law – balancing innovation, security and stability
Gaxiola Calvo Sobrino y Asociados, S.C. Several factors have contributed to Mexico becoming fertile ground for FinTech companies. As in other countries, the demand for cheaper loans, greater returns and more agile financial services, combined with sentiments of distrust toward traditional...
Fraud & Corruption
The rise in civil remedies for the growing criminalisation of business practices
Covington & Burling LLP Corporations and companies worldwide thrive on financial profit, and organised crime is no different. Starving criminal organisations and terrorists of financial livelihood prevents them from recruiting and functioning. As a major and complex...
Employment agreements subject to criminal penalties – DOJ targets no-poach and wage-fixing deals
Hughes Hubbard & Reed In October 2016, the antitrust division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission issued joint guidance announcing the DOJ’s intention to thereafter, and for the first time, criminally prosecute ‘naked’ no-poach and...
The political importance of asset recovery
Martin Kenney & Co., Solicitors Asset recovery is a term generally used to describe efforts made by a victim of a crime, usually a fraud, to get his or her stolen value back. It is a burgeoning area of practice, in major part because the quantum of value stolen and the overall risk has...
CONTRIBUTORS
AB-InBev
BartLAW
Clifford Chance Deutschland LLP
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP
CNH Industrial
Covington & Burling LLP
Dechert LLP
Deloitte LLP
DLA Piper
Fieldfisher LLP
Gaxiola Calvo Sobrino y Asociados, S.C.
GE Digital Europe, Russia and CIS
Hogan Lovells
Hughes Hubbard & Reed
Intertrust
Jenner & Block
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Martin Kenney & Co., Solicitors
Norton Rose Fulbright LLP
Penrhyn International
Reed Smith LLP
Siemens AG
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Solon Group
UHY Advisors