Search results for

The Netherlands is one of Europe’s most creditor-friendly jurisdictions. NautaDutil's Teun Struycken and David Viëtor explain how the country is vying with Luxembourg as the holding company jurisdiction of choice

Pfizer/AstraZeneca is just the tip

China’s new rules for domestic companies selling offshore bonds will benefit issuers, but credit enhancement structures will remain crucial

Poor old Esma. Tasked with implementing the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (Mifid II) and poised to announce its level one consultation, the regulator is increasingly being made aware of its shortcomings.

Pork producer WH Group's decision to pull its Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) sparked yet another round of criticism aimed at market practices in the city-state. The company had mandated a record 28 banks for its listing. The sheer size of the consortium reportedly made execution difficult, especially with weak demand for the deal.

Gluten-free dieters and dark pool fans have a few things in common Michael Lewis's book Flash Boys has drawn criticism from traders, brokers, banks, lawyers and exchanges about the accuracy of the picture it paints. A joke repeated at conferences and in conversation is that if Flash Boys can't be found in non-fiction section, you should try the best sellers shelf. The most widespread criticism of the book, which looks into the growth and effect of high-frequency trading (HFT) in the US, is that it is full of inaccuracies. But many also say that what Lewis reveals - which is true - isn't news. Everyone, they claim, is aware that time is money, dark pools create issues for transparent markets, and maker-taker can be problematic.

The Santiago Stock Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange Venture's (TSXV) planned junior market in Chile could allow companies to seamlessly dual list on both bourses.

José Ramón Paz Morales In the early 1990s, with the support of the international community, two securities exchanges were established in Honduras that formalised the domestic securities market for public offerings and injected much-needed capital into various sectors of the Honduran economy, especially the energy sector. By the mid 1990s, around 150 non-financial sector issuers were listed in both securities exchanges, representing approximately 90% of the total issuers listed. These issuers provided a broad range of attractive investment instruments to all kinds of local and foreign investors. In 1998, the Honduran financial system suffered a systemic crisis that began with wide ranging defaults in different sectors of the Honduran economy, caused by the effects of Hurricane Mitch. The crisis was aggravated by the lack of regulations in monitoring and controlling systemic risk and safeguarding the stability of the financial system as a whole. The Honduran securities market received far less support from the government than the banking sector, and as a result, was the most affected. By the end of the 1990s, trust in the domestic securities market was reduced substantially.

Oene Marseille Emir Nurmansyah The Finance Ministry of Indonesia has issued a new regulation clarifying its internal procedures for selecting foreign lenders in government procurement areas. Under this new regulation, the directorate-general of debt management would invite certain pre-selected international lenders to submit proposals to fund government procurement plans. The directorate would choose the bidder who offered the lowest cost on comparable loan packages. The directorate would initiate the bidding process by sending out requests for proposals to at least five qualified foreign lenders, determined to be the most suitable creditors. These prospective lenders' outstanding loans would have to fall within a permissible limit. In this regard, the government would consider the amount of outstanding loan these creditors have extended to the government's counterparty. The government would also look at the type and origin of the goods to be procured. The prospective lender closest to the goods' location would receive priority. Finally, these prospective lenders would have to have a track record of providing commercial loans to the government.

Mark Griffiths, Norton Rose Fulbright The past four weeks have been relatively quiet across the Middle East region with one notable exception. KING & SPALDING welcomed back a familiar face, recruiting Iraqi outfit Confluent Law Group's managing partner Zaid Al-Farisi. A former counsel in the US firm's New York and Riyadh offices, Al-Farisi will join the finance practice working across the Dubai and Riyadh offices. In South Africa, NORTON ROSE FULBRIGHT recruited Barclays Africa Group in-house counsel Mark Griffiths for its competition practice. CLYDE & CO has announced it will enter the market with offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town. The confirmed team includes five lawyers from Linklaters ally Webber Wentzel, though there are plans to increase this figure prior to launch. Initially the focus of the work will be dispute resolution and insurance but there are plans to expand this practice to include trade and infrastructure.