MAGAZINE
July 2015 Issue
Financier Worldwide Magazine
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COVER STORY
Investor perspectives on activism
Though shareholder activism has been a feature of the corporate landscape since the 1990s, over the course of the last few years it has certainly gained traction. Shareholder activism is becoming increasingly...
FEATURES
Mergers and acquisitions have boomed over the course of the last 18 months. From mega-mergers to the mid-market and smaller scale transactions, the resurgence has been considerable. For the first time...
Acquisition financing in China
Six years after the introduction and implementation of the Guidelines on Risk Management of Merger and Acquisition Loans granted by Commercial Banks, the China Banking Regulatory Commission has decided to...
Is Africa still a land of opportunity for private equity investment?
According to a recent report by the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA), between 2007 and 2014, $22bn in dedicated private equity capital was raised for Africa and 983 private equity deals...
PE investment in Indian real estate
In 2014, there was a significant upswing in private equity (PE) investment in the Indian real estate sector. Though the speed of that uptick has not quite been maintained in 2015, the resurgence remains notable...
Avoiding the abyss: finding a way ahead for the Brazilian economy
If ever a list was compiled of the world’s most put-upon presidents, one would surely wager on Dilma Rousseff, president of Brazil, appearing close to the top. Ms Rouseff is in the midst of a perilous...
ROUNDTABLE
THE PANELLISTS: Renée M. Dailey, Bracewell & Giuliani; David M. Friedman, Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman LLP; James H.M. Sprayregen, Kirkland & Ellis LLP; William T. Russell, Jr, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP; Van C. Durrer II, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates; Ken Pasquale, Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP; Mark Sherrill, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP; and D.J. Miller, Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP.
Bankruptcy litigation is a challenging and complex endeavour, requiring a variety of tactics and resolution mechanisms. For the parties involved, financial expectations can be at odds with the reality of the situation...
SPECIAL REPORT
Often referred to as victimless, in reality, white-collar crimes such as securities fraud, Ponzi schemes, embezzlement, corporate fraud, and money laundering have the potential to affect all of us – from individuals through to big business...
FORUM: Third party corruption and fraud
FW moderates a discussion on third party corruption and fraud between John C. Auerbach at EY LLP, Nathan Lankford at Miller & Chevalier Chartered, and Andrew Hayward at Subsea 7.
Recent actions confirm FinCEN’s aggressive anti-money laundering enforcement agenda
Blank Rome LLP The publicly stated mission of the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is to safeguard the US financial system from illicit use, and combat money laundering and promote...
The SEC’s renewed focus on accounting fraud and how it is leveraging technology to tip the scales
Navigant Consulting Inc. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has a rather daunting three part mission, to “protect investors; maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets; and facilitate capital formation”. The mission is especially...
The SEC is looking at your employee confidentiality agreements, and you should too
Faegre Baker Daniels In the nearly five years since Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act), much has been written about the Act’s whistleblower provisions. Among other...
Avoiding minefields: managing cross-border investigations
Ropes & Gray LLP As global business increases, so too does global enforcement and the corresponding need to conduct cross-border investigations. These investigations present many challenges, including varying, and...
Technology for third party risk management: striking a balance
Ernst & Young LLP Multinational companies are well aware of the growing need to design and implement risk-based third party due diligence programs. The requirement is regularly called out in statements by US government...
Australia tells OECD it is getting serious about foreign bribery
Corrs Chambers Westgarth It is well known that Australia has a patchy enforcement record in the area of foreign bribery and corruption. In 2012, the OECD published its ‘Phase 3 Report on Implementing the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention...
Law reform in New Zealand: creeping criminalisation?
Russell McVeagh A number of domestic and international events in the past decade have precipitated reviews of legislation regulating the conduct of business in New Zealand. There have been notable moves toward the criminalisation...
Information sharing between securities regulators
Bell Gully Information sharing between securities regulators located in different jurisdictions is increasingly important in the context of continuing globalisation and international trade. The New Zealand Financial Markets...
Q&A: International investigations and asset tracing
FW moderates a discussion on international investigations and asset tracing between Jon Barclay at Bedell Cristin Guernsey Partnership, Tamlyn Edmonds at Edmonds Marshall McMahon, George McKillop at Haymarket Risk Management Ltd, and Emma Ruane at Peters & Peters.
DEALfront
mergers & acquisitions
Danaher Corp to acquire Pall in $13.8bn deal
US based multinational Danaher Corporation announced in May that it had agreed to acquire Pall Corporation in a deal worth approximately $13.8bn. According to a statement released by the firm, Danaher will...
In a transaction that has been described as another significant step in building digital and video platforms to drive future growth, Verizon Communications Inc. announced it is to sign an agreement...
private equity & venture capital
Blackstone attracts $17bn to latest fund
Private equity (PE) giant the Blackstone Group has secured $17bn of funding from investors in just seven months – the biggest first close of a fund ever. Many analysts have suggested that the firm’s fundraising...
TPG Capital sells Par Pharmaceutical to Endo in $8.05bn deal
Endo International plc and Par Pharmaceutical Holdings, Inc. announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Endo will acquire the privately-held Par from TPG Capital in a $8.05bn deal. The Endo/Par combination will...
bankruptcy & corporate restructuring
Patriot Coal files for Chapter 11 – again
Patriot Coal Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiaries have filed voluntarily petitions for restructuring under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The Chapter 11 bankruptcy...
Magnetation files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
On 5 May, Magnetation LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after reaching an agreement with the company’s large noteholders to “restructure the company’s balance sheet and provide liquidity to support...
PROFESSIONALinsight
Banking & Finance
Organised trading facilities: how they differ from MTFs
Arnold & Porter LLP The first MiFID Directive introduced definitions of ‘regulated market’ (RM) and ‘multilateral trading facility’ (MTF). The recast MiFID (MiFID 2), which will apply from the 3 January 2017, has introduced the concept...
Good culture can be an opportunity for growth
BDO Culture. It can be a nebulous word for those involved in regulatory compliance. Difficult to define and often interpreted in different ways depending on who you talk to. But overlook culture at your own peril...
Recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms
NautaDutilh Avocats Luxembourg S.à r.l. Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council, establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms (BRRD) was adopted on 15 May 2014...
Corporate subscription financings – a sheep in wolves’ clothing
Walkers Convention dictates that a Cayman Islands exempted limited partnership (ELP) be utilised for offshore private equity fund subscription financings. The process is relatively straightforward. A limited...
Letters of credit in Australia
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan In Griffin Energy Group Pty Limited (Subject to Deed of Company Arrangement) & Anor vs. ICICI Bank Limited & Ors [2015] NSWCA 29 the Court of Appeal, in a joint judgment, reaffirmed an earlier decision...
CONTRIBUTORS
Arnold & Porter LLP
BDO
Bedell Cristin Guernsey Partnership
Bell Gully
Blank Rome LLP
Bracewell & Giuliani
Corrs Chambers Westgarth
Edmonds Marshall McMahon
EY
Faegre Baker Daniels
Haymarket Risk Management Ltd
Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman LLP
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Miller & Chevalier Chartered
NautaDutilh Avocats Luxembourg S.à r.l.
Navigant Consulting Inc.
Peters & Peters
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan
Ropes & Gray LLP
Russell McVeagh
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates
Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP
Subsea 7
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP
Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP
Walkers