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Laura Widmer Until recently, Switzerland's regime for social plans was rather liberal. No obligation to conclude a social plan existed unless one was foreseen in a collective employment agreement. If companies offered severance payments or other benefits in case of redundancies, they usually did so on a purely voluntary and fully discretionary basis. Since January 2014, the amended Swiss restructuring law has been in force and the situation has changed. As a compensatory measure for loosening the legal requirements for the transfer of insolvent businesses, the new rules introduced a duty to implement a social plan in case of mass dismissals. Employers are now required to negotiate a social plan if the criteria summarised below are met.

Mofcom’s new simplified merger review process is a welcome step towards a broader reform agenda. But ultimate success depends on its application

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

Regulatory scrutiny has increased FCPA risks for private equity and hedge funds in their dealings with sovereign wealth funds. Sidley Austin's Robert Keeling, Ike Adams and John Lupton explain why

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

The offshore RMB market’s future? As international financial centres compete for the status of offshore renminbi hub, some market participants fear a rise of transaction risk due to the currency's lack of a natural home. Trades between two US dollar-denominated accounts are cleared in New York while onshore renminbi trades are cleared via the China National Advanced Payment System. But offshore renminbi can be cleared in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. London and Frankfurt will also gain clearing capabilities soon.

The lighter side of the past month in the world of financial law

The use of UK schemes of arrangement (SOA) by foreign-incorporated companies has been boosted by a decision to allow German company APCOA Parking to utilise a scheme despite minimal connection to the country.

In tandem with high M&A dealflow, US and Canadian law firms aggressively expanded their corporate practices in late April and early May. One of the latest firms to ramp up its private equity practice is MCDERMOTT WILL & EMERY, which lured transactional and fundraising partner Michael Sartor from Ropes & Gray. On the opposite coast, SIDLEY AUSTIN recruited emerging companies and venture capital specialist Sam Zucker as a partner in Palo Alto. Late in April, KIRKLAND & ELLIS announced the opening of a Houston office and its hire of M&A lawyer Andrew Calder from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, whose private equity clients have included KKR and Blackstone Energy Partners.

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.