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An Insider Trading Bill is pending before the Cypriot parliament which, when enacted, will constitute a comprehensive legislative code dealing with all aspects of insider trading. The provisions of the Bill are based on the EU Directive on Insider Trading (Dir, 89/592, OJ 1989 No. L334/30) as well as insider trading legislation in the UK. Until the Bill becomes law, insider trading is controlled, albeit unsatisfactorily, by rules derived from general law. The protections against insider trading available under general law may be summarized as follows:

The International Primary Market Association (IPMA) is set to introduce a standard form of pricing supplement for its investment bank members despite the opposition of some legal practitioners. The standard form pricing supplement for use on Eurobond issues done under Medium Term Note (MTN) programmes, now the most common method of issuance, has taken a year to evolve given the lengthy consultation process with law firms as well as banks and the clearing agencies. "Having a standard form for plain vanilla issues is a major contribution to the market and we have put enough flexibility into the document so that it may be used on any programme," says Cliff Dammers, secretary general of the IPMA. The three big law firms in the Euro MTN market - Linklaters & Paines, Allen & Overy and Clifford Chance - were all asked to make submissions on the draft. Some lawyers in those firm argue that MTNs are by their nature not suitable for standardization. "It is not a market which lends itself to standardization," says David Dunnigan, partner in the London office of Clifford Chance. "Each programme tends to be crafted to the particular requirements of the borrower." Michael Voisin a partner at Linklaters & Paines in London agrees and argues that it will necessitate issuers changing the terms and conditions written into their programmes.

US firm Seward & Kissel has pulled out of Hungary. The Budapest practice of US rival Squire, Sanders & Dempsey will take over the office. Seward & Kissel's office, which opened in Budapest in 1992 and was the firm's only foreign outpost, was staffed by two senior lawyers: partner Blaise Pasztory and counsel Peter Komaromi. Squire Sanders' five lawyer team will move into Seward & Kissel's old office under the management of Pasztory and Komaromi.

On March 1 1998, the amendments to the 1989 EU Merger Regulation entered into force. For the details of the new regime see International Financial Law Review, June 1997, page 53.

Arbitration has become an increasingly important method of dispute resolution. Before the resumption of sovereignty by China on July 1 1997, Hong Kong and China were separate parties to the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards 1958. Chinese artibral awards were convention awards, enforceable in Hong Kong under section 42(1) of the Arbitration Ordinance. However, since July 1 1997, when Hong Kong and China ceased to be separate parties to the New York Convention, section 42(1) has no longer applied to Chinese awards. Questions then arose as to how Chinese arbitral awards can be enforced in Hong Kong.

The new ISDA standard confirmation for credit swaps should boost the credit derivatives market. By Daniel P Cunningham, R Brent Jones and Thomas J Werlen of Cravath, Swaine & Moore, New York

The Government of Abu Dhabi is restructuring and privatizing its water and electricity industries. The work of the Privatization Committee includes the establishment of a regulatory framework, the creation of a new body, (Regulation and Supervision Bureau for the Water and Electricity Sector), the drafting of regulatory licences and the unbundling of the existing vertically integrated government department into separate companies. Denton Hall is advising the Privatization Committee on all issues. Leading the London-based team is energy partner Christopher McGee-Osborne. Energy partner Richard Metcalf is also working on the project.

The law of the country where a bank account is kept will usually govern the banker-customer contract. However, the law of another country may affect the account.

Traditional Italian lawyers are beginning to adapt to competition from larger overseas firms. The believe they must follow the English and American model while retaining Italian characteristics. Barbara Galli reports

The exodus of project finance lawyers from Chadbourne & Parke continues. Ian Johnson, a UK project finance lawyer in the firm's Singapore office, will join US firm Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe at the beginning of May. He is the third project finance lawyer to leave Chadbourne in the last six months. Johnson will initially work from Orrick's Singapore office but will relocate to London by early 1999. He will head the UK office with Orrick's present New York managing partner Michael Voldstad. In September, US partner Peter Cleary left Chadbourne's Hong Kong office for UK firm Freshfields. And at the end of last year Martin Stewart-Smith joined UK firm Cameron McKenna. Johnson's departure leaves the US firm with no UK partners. A spokesman for Chadbourne denies the project finance department is in turmoil, but head of department, Rigdon Boykin, has been replaced by Chaim Wachsberger.