MAGAZINE

October 2013 Issue

Financier Worldwide Magazine


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COVER STORY

Regulation reshaping the investment banking industry

The past few years have been an uncertain time for investment banks around the world. After years of prosperity and exceptional returns, the industry was sent reeling by the global financial crisis, and has suffered since. Further, with a raft of incoming regulation due, the...

 

FEATURES

US M&A market flat in the first half of 2013

Despite the blockbuster deals announced in Q1 2013, the first half of the year saw relatively flat levels of US M&A activity, according to data published by Mergermarket and Merrill Datasite. Their annual half year report entitled ‘Deal Drivers America’ reviews... 

Boston Globe and Washington Post sold in industry shake up

Within the space of four days in August, two of the US newspaper industry’s most prominent heritage publications were sold, relatively cheaply, to newcomers to the sector.  On 6 August the Washington Post Company announced it had sold its flagship newspaper to... 

AIFMD is finally implemented

Originally conceived in the midst of the financial crisis, the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) has generated years of negotiation and intense political wrangling. The AIFMD entered into force on 21 July 2011, with EU Member States given until 22 July 2013 to...

Legacy costs push communities to the brink

Increasingly, for many US communities, municipal or Chapter 9 bankruptcies are becoming a stark reality. Last year alone, 12 Chapter 9 insolvencies were filed in the US, with a further four seen in 2013 so far. While no two cases are ever the same, one of the most common... 

India’s falling rupee

The Indian rupee, the worst performing currency of all the emerging markets, fell dramatically throughout August, leading many to believe that the nation stands on the edge of a financial precipice.  The US Federal Reserve’s announcement in May that it intends... 

 

ROUNDTABLE 

Global trade and customs

THE PANELLISTS: Marianne Rowden, American Association of Exporters and Importers; Mel Schwechter, BakerHostetler; Himanshu Tewari, BMR & Associates LLP; Renato Antonini, Jones Day; David J. Levine, McDermott Will & Emery, LLP; and Dr Ram Arvikar, Vectron International.

In the face of increasing trade-related enforcement action, multinationals have beefed up their compliance policies and procedures, though further challenges remain. Certainly among the Western economies, there has been a significant rise in trade-related disputes, including... 

 

SPECIAL REPORT

International dispute resolution

As globalisation continues unabashed, the threat of commercial conflict grows. As a result, international organisations with disputes in overseas markets increasingly seek effective means to resolve cross-border and multi-national disputes. Not only can such disputes be highly...

FORUM: Comparing regional arbitration processes

FW moderates a discussion on regional arbitration processes between Elie Kleiman at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, Adrian Cole at King & Spalding, L. Santiago Soria at Marval O’Farrell & Mairal, Karam Singh Parmar at Tan Kok Quan Partnership, and Dieter Hofmann at Walder Wyss Ltd.

Getting the most out of mediation

Norton Rose Fulbright With the increase in complexity of contracts, legal disputes have become much more common in this day and age. Correspondingly, the methods adopted by parties to resolve these disputes have also increased. While litigation through the courts still remains the traditional form of...

International arbitration: would a single set of global valuation standards assist parties in testing expert valuation evidence?

Charles River Associates (CRA) The International Valuation Standards Council (IVSC) has recently expanded its mandate to include creating a single set of high quality, valuation standards and a globally recognised, respected valuation profession. In this article, we consider potential implications of these...

Arbitration versus litigation

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton This article provides an overview of the relative strengths and weaknesses of international arbitration compared to litigation. It aims to assist the reader into coming to achoice as to which dispute resolution mechanism would be more suitable in the circumstances of the particular...

German courts emphasise supremacy of party agreements over the arbitral tribunal’s procedural discretion

Hogan Lovells In a landmark decision on 17 February 2011, the Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt (OLG Frankfurt) has strengthened the supremacy of parties’ procedural agreements over the arbitral tribunal’s procedural discretion (26 Sch 13/10). The German Supreme Court has rejected the...

Litigation: the first 90 days

Morrison & Foerster LLP The first 90 days of a suit are critical. Yet defendants and their lawyers tend to sit by passively as the early stages of litigation run their course. “Frequently”, writes Craig McEwen, “lawyers and their clients are trapped by the routines, incentives, and...

Class actions in Australia

Allens Class actions have now been a part of the Australian legal landscape for over 20 years. In recent years, Australia has become the most likely jurisdiction outside of the United States in which a corporation will face significant class action litigation. The growing number of class...

Q&A: Managing and resolving class action disputes

FW moderates a discussion on managing and resolving class action disputes between Cari K. Dawson at Alston & Bird, Ross McInnes at Clayton Utz, Steven F. Napolitano at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Wayne J. Lee at Stone Pigman Walther Wittmann, and Antonio Yanez, Jr at Willkie Farr & Gallagher.

 

DEALfront 

mergers & acquisitions

Atlas Copco acquires Edwards Group in $1.6bn deal

Swedish engineering company Atlas Copco AB has agreed to acquire the Edwards Group Ltd in a deal worth $1.6bn. The deal, announced on 19 August, will see Atlas pay $10.50 per share for Edwards. The price includes an initial fixed payment of $9.25 per share with an additional $1.25... 

Visteon sells Chinese joint venture stake for $1.2bn

Visteon Corporation announced on 13 August that it had entered into an agreement with joint venture partner Huayu Automotive Systems Company Ltd (HASCO) to sell its 50 percent stake in Chinese manufacturer Yanfeng Visteon Automotive Trim Systems Company Limited (YFV). The... 

private equity & venture capital

Vista Equity to acquire Qualcomm unit in $800m deal

Mobile chipmaker Qualcomm Incorporated has agreed to sell its logistics unit Omnitracs Inc to private equity firm Vista Equity Partners in a deal worth around $800m in cash. The deal is subject to the customary closing conditions, including obtaining authorisation from relevant... 

Sun Capital partners divests ASD Americas Holding

In a deal originally announced in June, Japanese company the LIXIL Corporation completed its acquisition of a 100 percent share of ASD Americas Holding Corporation, a North American manufacturer of high end kitchen and bathroom products. The deal saw LIXIL acquire ASD, the parent... 

bankruptcy & corporate restructuring

Eastman Kodak finally exits bankruptcy

The former pioneer of the photography industry, Eastman Kodak, has finally won court approval for its plan to exit bankruptcy, after Judge Allan Gropper overruled the few remaining objections from the company’s US trustee and shareholders in August. The company finally emerged... 

Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway files for bankruptcy protection

Railway operator Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway Ltd (MMA) was forced to file for bankruptcy protection in August due to mounting costs and potential liabilities – the result of a crude oil train explosion which killed 47 people in July. MMA filed for.. 

 

PROFESSIONALinsight 

Private Equity

Phoenix rising – restructuring as a solution for zombie funds

Landmark Equity Partners Today’s fundraising landscape for private equity fund managers is challenging. Many recent fundraising attempts have failed and other managers, with marginal track records, have chosen not to go to market with a successor fund. Of the more than 700 fund managers active before... 

Taking notice – notice of security to investors in a Cayman Islands fund

Walkers Much has been written on private equity fund subscription bridge financings involving Cayman Islands exempted limited partnerships, and the type of security to be granted to secure the loan obligations is fairly settled.  In practice, however, it is not the security... 

 

Fraud & Corruption

Corporate sentencing – how much could it cost?

Willkie, Farr & Gallagher LLP In recent years the fines imposed for criminal offences by corporates in England and Wales have come under criticism from many quarters, including the judiciary and the press. There has also been a focus in Parliament on making it easier to prosecute corporates for wrongdoing. This... 

New developments on anti-bribery legislation in Brazil

Vella, Pugliese, Buosi e Guidoni Anti-bribery rules are not new to Brazilian legislation, but, until very recently, the country did not have an organised system or an ‘Act’ such as the US Foreign Corruption Practices Act (FCPA). The country’s legal system in particular lacked a law providing for... 


CONTRIBUTORS

Allens

Alston & Bird

American Association of Exporters and Importers

BakerHostetler

BMR & Associates LLP

Charles River Associates (CRA)

Clayton Utz

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP

Hogan Lovells

Jones Day

King & Spalding

Landmark Equity Partners

Marval O’Farrell & Mairal

McDermott Will & Emery, LLP

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Norton Rose Fulbright

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom

Stone Pigman Walther Wittmann

Tan Kok Quan Partnership

Vectron International

Vella, Pugliese, Buosi e Guidoni

Walder Wyss Ltd.

Walkers

Willkie, Farr & Gallagher LLP


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