MAGAZINE
May 2019 Issue
Financier Worldwide Magazine
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COVER STORY
Done properly, a merger of rivals can be hugely rewarding. The $107bn deal between Anheuser-Busch InBev and SABMiller in 2015, for example, created a powerhouse in the drink and brewing industry. Today, Anheuser-Busch InBev is the world’s largest brewer...
FEATURES
On 20 November 2018, the European Parliament, European Council and European Commission reached an agreement on the proposed European Union (EU) framework for screening of foreign direct investments (FDIs). The proposal, put forward by the...
The advent of the fifth generation (5G) of wireless technology could be a revolutionary moment in the development of mobile internet connectivity. When they come online starting in 2020, 5G networks promise unprecedented speed, low latency and the capacity...
In a business world increasingly beholden to digital technologies, the role of chief technology officer (CTO) has steadily ascended the corporate hierarchy to become a critical component of day-to-day operations. Even a cursory examination of the roles and responsibilities...
GDPR bites: clarifying data consent transparency
Since it came into force one year ago, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has put the cat among the pigeons for organisations in the EU – as well as those based outside but offering goods and services inside – which process personal data as part of their...
Navigating evolving sanctions regimes
Complex, volatile and challenging, the global sanctions landscape is an arena swarming with numerous statutes, executive orders and country-specific regulations – making compliance a minefield for companies. Indeed, non-compliance with a sanctions...
ROUNDTABLE
MODERATOR: Rita Heimes, International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). THE PANELLISTS: Great Gu, Amgen; Antonis Patrikios, Fieldfisher; Aaron K. Tantleff, Foley & Lardner LLP; Carlos Garcia-Mauriño, General Electric Healthcare.
Since it came into force in May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has had a significant impact on personal data protection. While many companies within the regulation’s scope are fine-tuning their strategies in order to ensure compliance...
SPECIAL REPORT
Business strategy & operations
A company’s business strategy is (or should be) at the heart of everything it does. Therefore, an accurate business strategy overseeing operations carries inestimable importance. Such a strategy should not only be about how much money to invest...
Q&A: Responding to ESG activism
FW moderates a discussion on responding to ESG activism between Alex Heath at Edelman and Peter Montagnon at the Institute of Business Ethics (IBE).
Strategy development: are you making the right trade-offs in the process?
IMD With organisations today facing numerous challenges, from digital disruption to consolidation and maintaining growth, leaders must take a serious look at their strategic options. During strategic reviews, which can take place at regular intervals or be...
Energising strategy through effective operations management
University of Melbourne The strategy of any business can be thought of in practical terms as defining what it does and what it does not do. But there is much more to it than that. Strategy defines our competitive position, our intent going forward, and the means for how we intend...
The benefits of putting ethics at the heart of company purpose
Institute of Business Ethics Culture is a hot topic at the moment, with the revised UK Corporate Governance Code requiring directors to understand their corporate culture and take steps to assure themselves that an organisation’s ethical values are embedded within the business...
What is the moral gauge for leaders?
Frank C. Bucaro, LLC Socrates and Plato both taught that knowledge and virtue are summed up in the phrase: if one knows what is right, then one will do what is right. Virtue is a kind of knowledge in that deeply ingrained habits guide one’s action. Therefore, the goal of the moral...
Safeguarding the corporate brand and reputation: prep, plan, repeat
Farrer & Co. In a digital world where corporates are subject to global scrutiny, reputation matters more than ever. In 2012, the World Economic Forum (WEF) found that on average over 25 percent of a company’s market value comes from its reputation. This presents...
Time for boards to take control of tech governance
University of Oxford Developments in information technology, such as Big Data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI) and distributed ledger technology, are ever more central to companies’ operations, strategy setting, risk management and compliance functions. What are the governance...
LIBOR no more: practical guidance on how to prepare for the phase-out of LIBOR
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP First, it was the LIBOR scandal. Then, negative LIBOR. But soon, it will be LIBOR, no more. Followers of the financial press may well feel that LIBOR is never out of the news. LIBOR could be phased out by the end of 2021 as part of a broader move away from interbank...
Analysing the emergence of state privacy laws and its impact on US businesses
Husch Blackwell LLP Over the last year, states have increasingly turned their attention to enacting far-reaching consumer privacy laws that will require businesses to provide substantial privacy rights to consumers. The push first began in California through the enactment of the...
TALKINGpoint
International trade and foreign investment in ASEAN
FW moderates a discussion on international trade and foreign investment in ASEAN between Yeo Eng Ping, Adrian Ball and Tan Bin Eng at EY.
DEALfront
mergers & acquisitions
Worldpay and FIS agree $35bn deal
US FinTech company Fidelity National Information Services Inc (FIS) has agreed to acquire payment processor Worldpay for $35bn in a deal which, when completed, will create the biggest company in the processing and payments industry. The deal will see shareholders...
Nvidia to buy Mellanox Technologies for $6.8bn
In a transaction which unites two of the world’s leading companies in high performance computing (HPC) and builds on their long history of collaboration and joint innovation, Nvidia is to acquire Mellanox in a deal valued at approximately $6.9bn. Under the terms...
private equity & venture capital
Brookfield Asset Management to acquire controlling stake in Oaktree Capital
Following months of negotiations Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management Inc has agreed to acquire 62 percent of Oaktree Capital Management in a deal worth around $4.8bn. The deal is subject to the approval of shareholders, regulatory...
Advent to buy Evonik’s methacrylates plastics unit for $3.4bn
A venture which will create a new independent global market leader for methacrylates, global private equity (PE) investor Advent International Corporation is to acquire the methacrylates plastics unit of German chemicals group Evonik Industries AG...
bankruptcy & corporate restructuring
Windstream files for Chapter 11 protection
In a move designed to secure the long-term financial stability of the company, Windstream Holdings, Inc. and all of its subsidiaries, including Windstream Services, LLC, have filed voluntary petitions for reorganisation under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code...
Helicopter company PHI Inc has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in US Bankruptcy Court in Dallas. The company’s filing was a consequence of the imminent maturity of $500m in notes that the company was unable to refinance, as well as the lingering effects...
SPOTlight
Investment banker liability in M&A: complex, unsettled law heightens need for expert counsel
National Association of Corporate Directors On 4 January 2019, the US Supreme Court agreed to hear an appeal of the unusual securities law case of Varjabedian v. Emulex (2018). Argument is scheduled for 25 April 2019. The issue before the high court will be: “Whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the...
Blockchain and GDPR compliance
Willkie Farr & Gallagher Cryptocurrency has its share of sceptics, but even those sceptics have recognised the relevance and promise of blockchain technology for all types of organisations as a way to verify and trace transactions. Yet for companies with operations in the...
DOJ policies aim to reduce enforcement burden on cooperating entities
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP The Department of Justice (DOJ) is continuing to refine and explain its approach to companies suspected of financial crimes, while at the same time emphasising the importance of the prosecution of individuals. In a number of recent speeches, senior department...
Supportability for data portability
Bristows LLP Article 20 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) gives every data subject “the right to receive the personal data concerning him or her, which he or she has provided to a controller” in an appropriate machine readable form to enable the data subject...
CONTRIBUTORS
Amgen
Bristows LLP
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Edelman
EY
Farrer & Co.
Fieldfisher
Foley & Lardner LLP
Frank C. Bucaro, LLC
General Electric Healthcare
Husch Blackwell LLP
IMD
Institute of Business Ethics (IBE)
International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP)
National Association of Corporate Directors
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
University of Melbourne
University of Oxford
Willkie Farr & Gallagher