LATEST ANALYSIS
March 2012
30 Mar 2012
Canada’s largest communications company is set to get bigger. Conglomerate BCE Inc. has agreed to acquire Montreal’s Astral Media in a transaction valued at approximately $3.38 billion...
30 Mar 2012
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is likely to make examples of the worst offenders after finding common weaknesses...
29 Mar 2012
While it can be debated whether the JOBS Act will have an impact on employment in the U.S., it will have a significant favorable impact on companies seeking to access capital markets…
29 Mar 2012
With the recent expansion of activist shareholder activity, companies are pushing back with proposed amendments to the Williams Act that may significantly shift the balance of power in their favor…
29 Mar 2012
Contracts regularly contain rights of first refusal. However, the meaning of that term, the situations in which it is used, and the mechanics by which it operates, vary significantly from deal to deal…
29 Mar 2012
African and Asian natural resources companies are unearthing the benefits of a UK market listing by mining the shores of the Alternative Investment Market…
29 Mar 2012
Upholding investor protection in the world’s hottest market for IPOs is no easy feat for Hong Kong’s securities regulators. After racing past the New York Stock Exchange…
29 Mar 2012
Blue Planet Investments Group is proposing to restructure its investment trust companies as it seeks to put the group back into the black. Intended to reduce operating costs…
29 Mar 2012
Swiss commodities company Glencore International is selling off pieces of Viterra before the ink is even dry on the deal to acquire the Saskatchewan based agri-business. Glencore has agreed to sell a majority stake in Viterra’s agri-products business…
29 Mar 2012
With one month left until annual reports are due to be submitted to the SEC, preparations should be well underway for many U.S.-listed securities issuers. One China-based organic food company, however...
28 Mar 2012
Cybercrime is increasingly posing a threat to financial services firms and is now the second most reported problem in the sector, according to PwC...
27 Mar 2012
The SEC and the CFTC recently released economic analyses of the credit derivatives markets, listing some of the factors for when a market participant is considered a swap dealer…
27 Mar 2012
Company disclosures detailing ongoing geopolitical risk paint a dark picture in almost every region around the globe. From natural disasters to manmade financial catastrophes and terrorism…
27 Mar 2012
The FSA has outlined its business plan as it prepares to adopt the UK’s new regulatory model. Outlining the specific initiatives for the year ahead, it is a sneak peek into the…
27 Mar 2012
Federal and state regulators have ramped up their scrutiny of the residential mortgage-backed securities market in recent months, driving some financial firms that were ensnared in earlier probes…
27 Mar 2012
Canada’s regulators have begun to express concern regarding mortgages and consumer debt in Canada, raising the spectre of another real estate bubble about to pop…
27 Mar 2012
Crescent Point Energy has agreed to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Reliable Energy that it does not already hold in a transaction valued at approximately $99.1 million…
27 Mar 2012
Japanese chemical and healthcare conglomerate, Asahi Kasei has commenced its all cash offer for the entire share capital of NASDAQ-listed ZOLL Medical Corporation…
27 Mar 2012
Commodities giant Glencore International plc has agreed to acquire agri-business Viterra Inc. in a deal which values Viterra’s equity at approximately $6.1 billion…
26 Mar 2012
Organizations and public figures gathered outside the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday to demand immediate action to confront the rise of secret corporate spending...
22 Mar 2012
A transformational takeover calls for innovative legal drafting and the London Stock Exchange Group’s offer for LCH.Clearnet, the independent European clearing house, is no exception. Including complex offer mechanics and approval conditions it treads…
22 Mar 2012
In an environment of increased corporate governance scrutiny, succession planning both through departures and crises is a focal point for shareholder interests and transparency related issues…
22 Mar 2012
Since the onset of the financial crisis, financial firms and regulators have become obsessed with assessing counterparty risk. Recognizing the interconnected and global nature of the financial system has led…
22 Mar 2012
As part of an initiative to improve merger review transparency, Canada’s Competition Bureau has published its first monthly list of concluded merger reviews…
22 Mar 2012
Recent fraud allegations involving U.S.-listed Chinese companies have highlighted shortcomings in a disclosure based system, particularly where securities regulators primarily rely on…
22 Mar 2012
Zayo Group LLC, a privately held company, agreed to purchase broadband connections provider AboveNet Inc. for approximately $2.4 billion in cash…
22 Mar 2012
Rare earth producer and processor Neo Material Technologies, of Toronto, has agreed to be acquired by NYSE-listed Molycorp, Inc., for approximately $1.3 billion…
22 Mar 2012
PRC-based commodities miner China Shen Zhou Mining & Resources is on course to securing funding for a massive expansion in Guizhou, China…
21 Mar 2012
Proposed securitization rules under the Dodd-Frank Act and questions about the viability of the credit derivatives market could put an end to the kind of synthetic-risk...
21 Mar 2012
The European Commission's green paper on shadow banking begins an 11-week consultation, including a public hearing on April 27 at the commission's headquarters...
20 Mar 2012
A turbulent winter of discontent rained down company disclosures as all industries felt the impact of sovereign debt concerns. A review of UK filings reveals just how widespread sovereign debt fears are…
20 Mar 2012
Gaz Métro inc., the majority shareholder and financing vehicle for Gaz Métro Limited Partnership, has established a new $600 million secured revolving credit facility…
20 Mar 2012
A year later, industries affected by the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake are still grappling with losses sustained in the tragedy…
20 Mar 2012
With M&A activity down in the second half of 2011, and the trend continuing into early 2012, companies are increasingly looking to restructurings via spinoffs to maximize value…
20 Mar 2012
The scourge of financial disclosure woes that has plagued many China-based businesses listed on U.S. stock exchanges may have afflicted at least one company listed on the…
20 Mar 2012
An executive who cooperated in an investigation into disclosure violations at the investment adviser where he worked will not be charged for his participation in the breaches...
20 Mar 2012
Criticisms of the UK’s client money regime could hit critical mass as a £13 million accounting black hole in WorldSpreads Limited casts doubt…
15 Mar 2012
An examination of certain legislative developments since the publication of the draft European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) by the European Commission...
15 Mar 2012
International financial markets are fracturing as regulation around the world puts cracks in the global business model. Turning the clock back on globalization have been Barclays, HSBC and BNP Paribas who have all opted to become more national and less…
15 Mar 2012
Environmental shareholder proposals for the 2012 proxy season largely concern climate change and greenhouse gas issues, although many other issues are of concern...
15 Mar 2012
Aware of current investor demand for yield, Morguard North American Residential REIT has filed and obtained a receipt for a preliminary prospectus for its IPO…
15 Mar 2012
News of a red-hot merger between Youku Inc and Tudou Holdings has set China’s Internet industry abuzz, and is drawing interest from M&A lawyers and antitrust practitioners around the world…
15 Mar 2012
The recent announcement by national telecommunications company Telus Corp that it intends to do away with its non-voting shares highlights the “other” side of dual class arrangements...
15 Mar 2012
The FSA has fined Credit Suisse’s head of credit sales £210,000 for disclosing confidential client information relating to a bond issue and a related M&A deal…
15 Mar 2012
On March 12, 2012, Asahi Kasei Corporation announced its entry into a definitive agreement to acquire ZOLL Medical Corporation. Asahi, through a U.S subsidiary…
14 Mar 2012
The SEC wants more power to fine firms and individuals for fraud and market abuses, in the face of tougher public scrutiny and judicial opposition to recent settlements...
13 Mar 2012
Bribery, graft, kickbacks and piracy not only generate tabloid headlines, they also evince a healthy disquiet among in-house counsel disclosing business risks…
13 Mar 2012
A recent decision by a Quebec securities regulator has drawn attention to the use of concurrent private placements in M&A situations, and may prove important in assessing other concurrent transactions…
13 Mar 2012
The Hedge Fund Standards Board has agreed to an overhaul of its hedge fund standards to make them more international and to strengthen disclosure requirements...
13 Mar 2012
Limited exit options for foreign-invested businesses in China are putting a chokehold on private equity firms seeking to cash out on their investments in the PRC…
13 Mar 2012
Quest Software Inc. announced that it had agreed to be acquired by private equity and venture capital firm Insight Venture Partners in an all-cash deal...
13 Mar 2012
A group of selling shareholders at Michael Kors Holdings plan to unload up to 25 million ordinary shares in the American luxury lifestyle company to U.S. investors…
13 Mar 2012
Bulgarian oil company Petrol AD has extended the maturity date on its £100 million note programme as it faces significant head winds from a depressed Bulgarian oil market and liquidity constraints…
13 Mar 2012
With the ink barely dry on its purchase of Compass Petroleum, Whitecap Resources of Calgary is off and running on its next deal: the acquisition of Midway Energy…
9 Mar 2012
The U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council is facing time and policy challenges as it decides which specific non-bank firms it will designate as systemically important financial institutions…
8 Mar 2012
In the UK Supreme Court’s latest decision regarding Lehman Brothers, it found that a client’s money claims can extend into a firm’s own accounts where client money is comingled...
8 Mar 2012
Dodd-Frank related governance issues such as say-on-pay and proxy access have been well known
focal points for boardrooms during the 2012 proxy and annual meeting season, but another issue has topped headlines and is of increasing concern to boardrooms: business intelligence gathering activities…
8 Mar 2012
With a new tax year approaching, tax-efficient vehicles are once again on the rise. The British Smaller Companies VCT plc (‘BSC’) is making an equity offering…
8 Mar 2012
R.V.B. Holdings (“RVB”), a recently restructured technology firm in Israel, has secured financing to forge ahead with expansion plans laid out by its new management…
8 Mar 2012
E-commerce entities and other internet service operators in China are scrambling to review, or in some cases establish, data privacy policies to stay on the right side of the…
8 Mar 2012
Specialty pharmaceuticals company Paladin Labs of Montreal has entered into a strategic partnership whereby Paladin will accelerate its buy-out of the remaining 55.01 percent interest in Pharmaplan of South Africa and merge the Pharmaplan business with...
8 Mar 2012
Though issuers have been a primary focus in the recent regulatory review of Chinese-based companies listed in Canada and the U.S., auditors and the auditing process have also come under scrutiny…
7 Mar 2012
Companies in the United States should focus on implementing performance metrics to defend themselves from whistleblower claims and to prevent misconduct...
6 Mar 2012
While healthcare reform and patent reform disclosures have waned over the past year, the continued pace of Dodd-Frank-related proposed rulemakings from the SEC means regulatory reform risk will remain heightened for some time…
6 Mar 2012
Fears over the nefarious nature of banking spiked recently when the ISDA ruled that the banking industry would not be liable for $3.7 billion in credit default swap liabilities on Greece’s restructuring. Less apparent was how the matter has nothing to do…
6 Mar 2012
After a brief offering lull, China-based businesses are testing the waters in the United States once again for initial public offerings. However, IPO hopefuls should prepare…
6 Mar 2012
On March 30, 2012, the exemption of advisers to private equity funds and other private funds from the requirement to register with the SEC expires…
6 Mar 2012
Pricing and management support are proving to be pivotal for recent takeover bids involving Chinese and Australian companies. While some cost-conscious executives are…
5 Mar 2012
With the Supreme Court of Canada having put an end to the notion of a national securities regulator this past December, securities regulation and enforcement remain matters of provincial and territorial jurisdiction, at least for the time being…
2 Mar 2012
Montreal-based investment firm Fiera Sceptre is making a move into the big leagues by acquiring portfolio management firm Natcan from National Bank of Canada for $309.5 million…
1 Mar 2012
Things may be looking up for a struggling electronics manufacturer listed that recently won a substantial tax reduction from Hong Kong’s Inland Revenue Department…
1 Mar 2012
With Dodd-Frank based enhanced director disclosure and say-on-pay regulations primed to make waves in the 2012 proxy season, further scrutiny and public discourse will likely stir up debates on the issue of executive perks…
1 Mar 2012
Diversified investment company Exchange Income Corporation of Winnipeg has issued a final short-form prospectus in connection with its proposed $50 million bought deal offering of common shares…
1 Mar 2012
Tensions with Iran and soaring oil prices have promoted ever entrepreneurial Goldman Sachs to oil the cogs of finance with the issue of warrants linked to the price of Brent crude oil…
1 Mar 2012
Middle East companies should begin to evaluate their boards of directors to assess just how effective they are, industry officials have said. Speaking at the recent GCC Regulators' Summit...
1 Mar 2012
The recent increase in the number of Chinese-Canadian collaborative projects reflects a growing level of comfort between businesses in the two nations…
1 Mar 2012
Seeds sown by the Securities and Exchange Commission to curb confidential filing privileges are bearing more comprehensive risk disclosures from China-based…
1 Mar 2012
The EU is dressing down short sellers with new rules banning naked shorting, but the new regulations might fail to live up to expectations...