Regions

GERMAN UPDATE – New Disclosure Requirements to Prevent Secret Stake-building in German Listed Companies

Executive Summary: New share- and instrument holding disclosure rules concerning German listed companies go into force on 1 February 2012. The new rules particularly intend to prevent secret stakebuilding in listed companies. The new rules are likely to have a significant impact on public takeovers. The rules may also apply, under particular circumstances, to non-German companies … Continued

Editors’ Note:  Christof Jäckle and Emanuel Strehle are partners at Hengeler Mueller and members of XBMA’s Legal Roundtable.  As leading German M&A specialists they have broad experience with German public companies in the takeover arena, and the German ownership disclosure requirements that have recently been modified.  This paper follows Olivier Diaz’ recent post on LVMH’s stakebuilding in Hermes and the French regulatory reaction, further marking the trend of modernizing disclosure requirements in many jurisdictions in order to address under-the-radar stakebuilding. We invite papers from other jurisdictions on this topic.

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CHINESE UPDATE – MOFCOM Conditionally Clears Acquisition (Requiring Disposition) by Private Equity Investor, Dispelling Notion that Private Equity Deals Are Less Subject to Anti-Trust Challenge in China

Executive Summary/Highlights:  MOFCOM conditionally cleared the acquisition of Savio Macchine Tessili S.p.A ofItaly by Alpha Private Equity Fund V, a European private equity firm, subject to certain disposition conditions. This is the first conditional decision relating to a private equity investor that grants conditional approval.  Historically, PE firms have believed that their transactions were very … Continued

Editors’ Note:  This post was authored by Janet Hui (Xu Rongrong) and Sarah Chen of Jun He.  Janet Hui is a partner at Jun He inBeijing with extensive experience in M&A, antitrust and competition matters.

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BRAZILIAN UPDATE – Brazil’s New Antitrust Law To Require Pre-Merger Clearance

Executive Summary/Highlights: The Brazilian House of Representatives has approved a bill that substantially changes merger review procedures and antitrust investigations in Brazil.  The new law is subject to Presidential approval and will likely become effective in mid-2012. The new law creates a pre-merger review system (clearance will be a condition precedent to closing) and changes … Continued

Editors’ Note:  This paper was authored by Tito Amaral de Andrade, partner, and Erica Sumie Yamashita, associate, at Machado, Meyer, Sendacz e Opice Advogados, one of Brazil’s most  respected corporate law firms with extensive experience in Brazilian M&A and antitrust matters.

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MEXICAN UPDATE – Foreign Asset Management Companies Now Eligible to Manage Mexican Pension Funds

Executive Summary/Highlights:  Mexico’s Retirement System National Commission recently enacted new legislation designed to facilitate the outsourcing of investment management of Mexican pension funds. One of the main goals of the new legislation is to create a competitive market that is open to international asset managers. The new legislation permits SIEFORES and their authorized Agents to … Continued

Editors’ Note:  Manuel Galicia Romero is a founding partner of Galicia Abogados and a member of XBMA’s Legal Roundtable. Mr. Galicia, who was involved in the negotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), is a leading expert in international transactions in Mexico.

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JAPANESE UPDATE – A Step Towards Easing Restrictions on Use of Exchange Offers by Japanese Companies Making Foreign Acquisitions

Executive Summary/Highlights:  Japanese legal hurdles to cross-border exchange offers or triangular mergers have deterred Japanese acquirers from using their stock in cross-border acquisitions. A recent amendment to the Law on Special Measures for Industrial Revitalization and Innovation, which took effect on July 1, 2011, introduces a new path to facilitate exchange offers by Japanese firms … Continued

Editors’ Note:  This paper was authored by Akemi Suzuki, a partner at Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu who concentrates on domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions in theU.S., Asia andEurope.  Shuji Yanase is a former chairman of Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu and a member of XBMA’s Legal Roundtable, with more than thirty years of leadership in international M&A transactions involving Japanese firms.

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PERUVIAN UPDATE – New Rules for Investments in Natural Resources in Peru

Executive Summary/Highlights: New laws  provide indigenous people consultation right with respect to investment in Peruvian natural resources, but not the veto investors feared; however, they could delay projects while regulations are worked out, New mining “windfall profit tax” expected by the Peruvian Government to raise the total tax and mandatory profit sharing costs in the … Continued

Editors’ Note:  This paper was written by Jose Antonio Payet and Silvia Cachay, partners at Payet Rey Cauvi, one of Peru’s leading firms with significant experience in foreign investment in Peru.  Mr. Payet is a member of XBMA’s Legal Roundtable.

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AUSTRALIAN UPDATE – Trends and Developments in Australian Cross-Border M&A

Executive Summary:  So far this year, about  70% of Australian announced listed company deals over $100m have involved foreign bidders.  Foreigners making bids in Australia include principally acquirors from the US, UK, Canada and China. With the Asian demand for resources and agribusiness companies, Chinese and Indian bids are expected to increase. The large number … Continued

Editors’ Note:  This paper was authored by Gilbert + Tobin partners Neil Pathak, Peter Cook and Nirangjan Nagarajah.  Danny Gilbert, co-founder and Managing Partner of Gilbert + Tobin, is a member of XBMA’s Legal Roundtable and non-executive director of National Australia Bank.

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AUSTRIAN UPDATE – Developments in Austrian M&A in 2011

Executive Summary/Highlights: Austrian M&A during Q1 through Q3 2011 was largely driven by (1) consolidation involving intra group restructurings with disposals and exits, and (2) transactions triggered by insolvency. Consolidation of the Austrian banking sector remained a key driver for transactional activity. New 2011 law implemented Regulation 2009/109 EC, providing among other things for lesser … Continued

Editors’ Note:   Christian Herbst is a partner Schönherr and a member of XBMA’s Legal Roundtable.  He is one of the leading Austrian specialists in cross-border M&A, takeovers and joint ventures, representing mostly foreign clients with respect to investments in Austria and Central Eastern Europe.

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POLISH UPDATE – Increasing Number of “Concentrations” Blocked Under Polish Competition Law

Executive summary The increase in M&A activity inPolandhas been accompanied by growing emphasis on the evaluation of “concentrations” under Polish competition law. In recent years, increasing numbers of concentrations have been blocked or given only conditional clearance. In light of the Polish “Competition policy for 2011–2013”, a policy specifying the plans of the Polish competition … Continued

Editor’s Note:  This update comes from Tomasz Wardyński, partner, Izabela Zielinska-Barlozek, partner and Sabina Famirska, senior associate at Wardyński & Partners.  Tomasz Wardyński is a member of XBMA’s Legal Roundtable.  He and his colleagues are leading experts on Polish competition and M&A matters.

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RUSSIAN/UK UPDATE – Adverse impact of the UK Bribery Act 2010 on Cross-Border Corporate Transactions in Russia

Executive Summary/Highlights: The UK Bribery Act 2010 has far reaching territorial application and can even apply to Russian companies. Affected companies must now have in place adequate internal anti-bribery procedures and ensure the same compliance of any of its associated persons. Strong contractual protections may prove necessary to limit exposure to prosecution under the Act. … Continued

Editors’ Note: This paper was authored by Andrey Goltsblat and Ian Ivory, an English Law partner at Goltsblat BLP in Moscow.  Mr. Goltsblat is a member of the XBMA Legal Roundtable and a leading expert on Russian M&A, having completed more than US$25 billion of transactions in the last two years. The paper focuses on the ramifications of the new UK Bribery Act for Russian deals, but may have broader applicability as the ripple effects of the UK Act are felt in other jurisdictions as well.

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