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• Clifford Chance's London office has lost its head of corporate finance, Peter Brooks. Brooks has left to become general counsel for one of his clients, Deutsche Morgan Grenfell. He has worked at Clifford Chance for 28 years.

Simon Firth of Linklaters & Paines, London, looks at the growth of a trend that has contributed significantly to the reduction of credit risk in the financial markets, and a proposal to boost it further

Performance bonds are contracts of guarantee commonly used in international trade. Their commercial purpose is to secure the performance of a primary obligation through assured and prompt payment in case of default. No dispute arising out of the underlying agreement between the principal and the beneficiary of the guarantee ought to interfere with the independent undertaking of the guarantor. Hence, performance bonds invariably include an absolute undertaking by the guarantor to pay 'on first demand'.

With small home markets, Benelux lawyers have been among the first in Europe to consider cross-border mergers and alliances. Their successes will be a model for others to follow. Paul Lee reports

British Telecom has acquired a 25% stake in French telecommunications company Cegetel for £1.1 billion (US$1.7 billion). Cegetel, which is 50% owned by French utility Compagnie Générale des Eaux, will compete directly with France Télécom for mobile and fixed service licences in advance of the date set for liberalization of the European market, January 1 1998.

Despite their frequent use in Canada, US lawyers are often puzzled by bankers' acceptances. Lisa Boulton of Tory Tory DesLauriers & Binnington, Toronto, explains why they are so popular in Canada's money markets

Since UK firm Allen & Overy announced the appointment of David Slade as a project finance partner in the New York office (see Insides, IFLRev, October), three other lawyers have joined Slade at Allen & Overy, effectively wiping out the Russian practice of US firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy.

Zhuhai Highway Co

On September 11 the Bankruptcy Legislation Amendment Bill 1996 passed the House of Representatives in amended form. Key provisions contained in the Bill include:

The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is reviewing comments from brokers, practitioners and other members of the public on its Draft for a Composite Securities and Futures Bill (Draft Bill) issued in April 1996. The Draft Bill aims to consolidate the present regulatory regime, embodied in not less than 11 Ordinances governing the securities industry, into a single user-friendly composite bill. After reviewing comments and suggestions from the public, the SFC is expected to redraft the Draft Bill and submit it to the Legislative Council for consideration in this legislative session.