For any UK fintech business involved with payments of electronic money (e-money) and any (experienced) investor in these businesses, safeguarding client funds is a key regulatory issue....more
10/2/2024
/ Annual Reports ,
Auditors ,
Compliance ,
Consultation ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Customers ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Investors ,
Lehman Brothers ,
Money Transfer ,
Payment Systems ,
UK
News of the failure of Silicon Valley Bank in the United States has dominated headlines over the last few days. Late yesterday, Friday, 10 March 2023, the Bank of England made an announcement about the status of Silicon...more
3/13/2023
/ Bank of England ,
Banks ,
Commercial Loans ,
Contract Terms ,
Counterparties ,
Deposit Accounts ,
Insolvency ,
ISDA ,
Silicon Valley ,
UK ,
UK Insolvency Act
On 19 December 2022, the UK Insolvency Service published the “Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act — Final Evaluation Report November 2022,” which considers the operation of the permanent measures within the Corporate...more
In BTI 2014 LLC v. Sequana SA and Others [2022] UKSC 25 (“Sequana”), the Supreme Court confirmed the existence of a duty owed at common law by company directors to consider the interests of its creditors, and also provided...more
12/23/2022
/ Board of Directors ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Creditors ,
Debtors ,
Dividends ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Insolvency ,
Liquidation ,
Shareholders ,
UK ,
UK Supreme Court
The National Security and Investment Act 2021 ("NSIA" or "the Act") came into force in the UK on 4 January 2022. NSIA expands the UK Government’s powers to scrutinise certain acquisitions and investments on national security...more
The pandemic has brought much uncertainty to the hotel sector — Intermittent national and regional lockdowns, work from home mandates and restrictions around domestic and international travel have left hoteliers in the...more
2/24/2022
/ Acquisitions ,
Business Assets ,
Buyers ,
Distressed Assets ,
Documentation ,
Hotels ,
Insolvency ,
Liquidation ,
Mergers ,
Sellers ,
Selling a Business ,
Target Company ,
UK
Top 10 Questions About Subchapter V Reorganization -
Reorganization under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code offers powers and benefits that are simply not available in out-of-court restructurings. Chapter 11...more
4/28/2021
/ Bankruptcy Code ,
Chapter 11 ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Creditors ,
Debt Restructuring ,
Debtors ,
Early Stage Companies ,
Emerging Growth Companies ,
Relief Measures ,
Reorganizations ,
Small Business ,
Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 (SBRA) ,
Startups ,
Trustees
On 8 October 2020 the UK Government published draft regulations which were intended to regulate and scrutinise pre-pack sales to connected parties. The regulations required that, in relation to a sale of all or substantially...more
2/26/2021
/ Board of Directors ,
Buyers ,
Connected Entities ,
Creditors ,
Insolvency ,
New Regulations ,
Sale of Assets ,
Sellers ,
Selling a Business ,
Shareholders ,
UK ,
UK Parliament
THE PENSION SCHEMES ACT 2021 -
The Pension Schemes Bill 2019-20 (“the Bill”) was first published on 16 October 2019. Following the dissolution of the 2017-2019 Parliament at the end of the 2019 session, the Bill was...more
The return of Crown Preference on 1 December, 2020 has widely united the restructuring community against the new measures. Whilst the rationale that the Treasury should have priority for sums received by a debtor on its...more
This bulletin is of particular interest to our clients and contacts who are directors of UK companies which face liquidity issues. Directors (including shadow directors) can be liable for the debts of their companies when...more
The Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 received royal assent on 25 June 2020. Many of the provisions of the act are based on the bill which was initially proposed pre-COVID-19, with a framework having been set out...more
9/15/2020
/ Board of Directors ,
Breach of Contract ,
Contract Termination ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Creditors ,
Debtors ,
Goods or Services ,
Insolvency ,
Lenders ,
Moratorium ,
Personal Liability ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Contracts ,
UK ,
UK Companies Acts ,
UK Insolvency Act ,
Winding Up Petitions ,
Wrongful Trading
Board Decision Making in a Down Cycle -
The last several months have been unprecedented in terms of how quickly and drastically business environments have changed. With widespread uncertainty and financial distress...more
8/26/2020
/ Board of Directors ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
D&O Insurance ,
Duties & Responsibilities ,
Financial Distress ,
Independent Directors ,
Liquidity ,
Personal Liability ,
Special Committees
The guidance set out in this document is provided for the benefit of UK directors in order to address certain potential insolvency-related risks which may arise as a result of the challenging circumstances affecting many...more
The Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill (the Bill) had its first reading in the House of Commons on Wednesday 20 May 2020. It will next be considered on 3 June. It is expected to be enacted into law in late June or early...more
5/28/2020
/ Breach of Contract ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Goods or Services ,
Insolvency ,
Moratorium ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Contracts ,
UK ,
Winding Up Petitions
The next recession will be the first to occur since Bitcoin and other crypto-assets became prevalent in UK businesses. This Client Alert highlights how UK courts and insolvency officeholders may deal with crypto-assets in an...more
4/16/2020
/ Bitcoin ,
Creditors ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Economic Downturn ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Insolvency ,
Popular ,
Recessions ,
UK ,
UK Insolvency Act
On 25th March 2020 the UK government passed the Coronavirus Act 2020 (the “Act”) granting emergency powers to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The Act includes some limited protection for commercial tenants.
There is some...more
During these unsettled times, there is heightened concern around the implications for borrowers under their secured credit facilities. Broadly these fall into three categories: (1) drawing funds under existing committed...more
THE RISE OF P2P LENDING -
With interest earned on capital at a low, a decreased appetite by High Street lenders to lend to small and medium-sized enterprises (SME’s) in the wake of the financial crisis and an opportunity...more
On Tuesday (11th September) the English High Court sanctioned two schemes of arrangement which are integral to the restructure of Syncreon, a US-headquartered global logistics business. This decision, the first where a...more