MAGAZINE
March 2017 Issue
Financier Worldwide Magazine
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COVER STORY
Determining executive compensation
Executive compensation has always been a delicate and contentious issue, but it has come under more intense scrutiny in the years following the financial crisis. Wealth inequality is growing at a rapid pace. According to the Economic Policy Institute...
FEATURES
The technology, media and telecom (TMT) sector has seen significant mergers and acquisitions activity in recent years. Lately there have been a number of notable M&A transactions announced in the space, with mega mergers proving a popular...
Transparency and the PE industry
Transparency in business bestows an aura of credibility and fidelity, whereas a lack of it breeds suspicion and lingering doubt – a notion the private equity (PE) industry is, or should be, well aware of. To be sure, the PE industry, composed...
The rise of financial technology – or FinTech – has been meteoric. Financial institutions often form the vanguard of innovation, be it new products or moving into new markets. However, the rise of FinTech is one of the most telling developments...
State of relations: financial institutions and regulators
The past 12 months has been a period of considerable political, social, technological and economic upheaval across the globe, with new empires rising and others potentially crumbling. For the financial services sector, it has also been...
Upping the arbitration ante in China
Already an established and popular method of resolving disputes in China, arbitration is now set to become an even more desirable solution due to the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (SCIA) updating its rules so that investor-state...
ROUNDTABLE
THE PANELLISTS: Robert A. Bartell, Duff and Phelps; Gregory Lindae, FMO; Justin Abelow, Houlihan Lokey; Albert Alsina, Mediterrania Capital Partners; and Christopher Elvin, Preqin.
Private equity (PE) has seldom looked as positive, with a distinct sense of optimism surrounding PE funds and deal flow. Fund managers have taken advantage of a favourable exit environment to distribute record levels of capital back to...
SPECIAL REPORT
Emerging markets – opportunities and risk management
Although emerging markets offer a wealth of investment opportunities, these landscapes also present a number of risks for overseas entities, such as potential fraud and corruption, difficulties acquiring accurate financial information...
FORUM: Managing and resolving commercial disputes in Africa
FW moderates a discussion on managing and resolving commercial disputes in Africa between Shaparak Saleh at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, Dr Robert Gaitskell QC at Keating Chambers, and Tamara Egbedi at Spectrum Geo Ltd.
Financial restructuring and insolvency challenges in emerging markets
Munsch Hardt Emerging economies are home to approximately 85 percent of the world’s population – around 6 billion people. These markets are playing an increasingly significant role in the global economy, whether this is measured in terms...
Mexico: emerging market, opportunities for new investments
Cuesta Campos y Asociados Mexico has become a very attractive emerging market for foreign investors. It is Latin America’s second largest economy with a $1.26 trillion GDP, placing it as the 13th largest in the world. In terms of purchasing...
Venture capital transactions in Mexico
Kuri Breña, Sánchez Ugarte y Aznar, S.C. Mexico is consistently ranked as one of the most attractive emerging markets in which to invest. The country has a steady economy and throughout the last two decades has slowly transitioned into a middle class country...
2017 – a year to renegotiate debt
Mazzucco Donelli Mello As far as the Brazilian economy is concerned, 2016 was a disaster. After the downturn recorded in 2015, the two-year period spanning 2015 and 2016 will go down in history as one of Brazil’s worst ever economic performances...
Virtual share plans: the right tool for Hungarian startups to attract and keep talent?
Schoenherr Recent success stories of Hungarian IT companies, such as Prezi or Ustream, have attracted more interest from Hungarian and international investors to the growing Hungarian startup scene. Depending on where a startup...
Factors driving emerging market investment activity
Bogaru, Braun Noviello & Associates Romania is now the largest market in Eastern Europe and the second largest in Central Europe. The country has also improved its economic and business environment, registering a 4.2 percent increase...
India – a front runner among emerging markets
Rajani Associates Emerging or ‘frontier’ markets are economies which are in a transition phase, where the financial and regulatory infrastructure is less mature compared to developed economies. Though characterised by low per capita income...
Exits by foreign investors: decoding the pricing norms
Platinum Partners India is fast becoming one of the largest recipients of foreign direct investment (FDI), aided by the government’s recent effort to improve the ease of doing business. The United Nations ‘World Economic Situation and Prospects...
Legal sanctity of ‘cherry picking’ assets in slump sale deals
Ara Law In mergers & acquisitions (M&A) transactions, ‘slump sales’ is one of the preferred ways of carrying out a deal due to the various tax and stamp duty incentives associated with it. However, the very concept of a ‘slump sale’ and the conditions...
How investors ought to think about investing in Africa
Afriwise Over the past few years, the attention being paid to African markets has increased significantly. This has been spurred by investors who are targeting so-called ‘higher returns’ in higher growth economies. Affirming this is the IMF’s...
African diamonds: challenges, risks and opportunities in the African emerging markets
Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr Recently, Africa has emerged as a hot topic in emerging markets. With the potential for significant growth and an abundance of natural resources, coupled with multiple risks and challenges, why would Africa not be a...
Risks associated with investing in emerging markets – Nigeria in focus
Olaniwun Ajayi LP Nigeria has been described by Goldman Sachs as one of the next 11 economies with a high potential to become one of the world’s economic powerhouses in the 21st century. The country’s economy is an emerging one that...
DEALfront
mergers & acquisitions
BAT to acquire Reynolds for $49bn
In a deal that creates an industry leader focusing on innovation and brand building, British American Tobacco plc. (BAT) and Reynolds American Inc. (Reynolds) announced a $49bn merger. Under the terms of the agreement, which will see BAT...
Luxottica and Essilor in $49bn merger
Luxury eyewear specialists, Italian frame manufacturer Luxottica Group and French optical lens producer Essilor International, have announced that they are to merge in an all stock deal worth $49bn. The transaction, announced in January...
private equity & venture capital
UnitedHealth Group to buy PE backed Surgical Care Affiliates for $2.3bn
Diversified health insurance firm UnitedHealth Group has announced that it is to acquire outpatient surgery chain Surgical Care Affiliates (SCA) for around $2.3bn. The deal will see SCA’s private equity backer, TPG Capital, which owns a 30 percent...
KKR buys Hitachi Koki for $1.3bn
Leading global investment firm KKR has announced that HK Holdings Co., Ltd, an entity owned by investment funds controlled by KKR, has made a tender offer of approximately $1.3bn for all the existing common shares and stock acquisition...
bankruptcy & corporate restructuring
Though the number of bankruptcy filings since the financial crisis has fallen sharply in recent years – due to a combination of low interest rates, easy access to financing, an abundance of out-of-court settlement alternatives and an improving...
Avaya files for bankruptcy protection
American multinational technology company Avaya Inc., along with certain of its domestic subsidiaries, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a bid to better position itself for the future. The company is said to have a debt load of...
PROFESSIONALinsight
Risk Management
Five actionable steps to boost your finance department’s risk management strategy
Dolphin Risk is inevitable in all business decisions and operations, but can only be managed properly when the right strategies are put in place. Finance departments are particularly exposed to risk for any number of reasons, including but not limited...
Cyber security and the Trump era
Brown Rudnick Much of the recent US presidential campaign was unprecedented. Among the various shocks, vitriol and hyperbole, there was one recurring theme that had already been a concern for business and investors for some time: cyber security. From the...
Legal strategies for responding to cyber intrusions around the world
Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP In the early 1990s, international police forces estimated that less than 10 percent of computer crime was reported worldwide. Today, estimates suggest that a whopping 18 percent of cyber intrusions are reported. If that second estimate seems low...
Fraud & Corruption
Strings attached: compliance expectations in projects involving multilateral development banks
Vinson & Elkins LLP It comes as little surprise to most sophisticated companies that bad conduct by employees, agents or partners, such as bribing a government official, could result in criminal charges against the company. Yet a surprising number of...
Should you voluntarily disclose FCPA violations?
Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) continues to be a high priority area for the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Companies paid a record-breaking $2.4bn to resolve FCPA enforcement actions in 2016...
SPOTlight
How can technology improve face to face interaction with customers?
Intelenet Global Services The retail banking landscape has changed considerably in the wake of the digital revolution, but what does this actually mean for banks and how they engage with their customers? The continued availability of in-person services remains...
US patents – world’s most valuable and staying that way
Foley & Lardner LLP US patents remain unchallenged as the most valuable patents in the world, and this is unlikely to change for decades to come. This premier status of US patents flows from the size of the US economy, the relatively open nature...
Trade finance: an attractive asset class
ICC Banking Commission Investors are always looking for attractive investment options. Over $110 trillion of investible assets exist globally in insurance, pensions, endowments, sovereign wealth funds, hedge funds, foundations, mutual funds...
CONTRIBUTORS
Afriwise
Ara Law
Bogaru, Braun Noviello & Associates
Brown Rudnick
Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr
Cuesta Campos y Asociados
Dolphin
Duff and Phelps
FMO
Foley & Lardner LLP
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP
Houlihan Lokey
ICC Banking Commission
Intelenet Global Services
Keating Chambers
Kuri Breña, Sánchez Ugarte y Aznar, S.C.
Mazzucco Donelli Mello
Mediterrania Capital Partners
Munsch Hardt
Olaniwun Ajayi LP
Platinum Partners
Preqin
Rajani Associates
Schoenherr
Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP
Spectrum Geo Ltd.
Vinson & Elkins LLP