Blog

25th April 2013 14:57CIPD research reveals a gulf in expectations between young people and employers that is contributing to high levels of youth unemployment   There is a clear mismatch between employers' expectations of young people during the recruitment process and young people's understanding of what is expected of them.  This is hin ... read more

14th March 2013 11:36Investor behaviour does not reflect the declining yields of European high yield debt and the weakening outlook for this investment, according to a report by S&P Capital IQ entitled “High Yield Corporate Bonds: Still a Risk Worth Taking?”   S&P Capital IQ found that yields on European high yield debt have been decreasing by an a ... read more

By James Owen Weatherall
6th February 2013 15:05A book which reveals the people and ideas on the cusp of a new era in finance…   After the economic meltdown of 2008, many pundits placed the blame on ‘complex financial instruments" like derivatives, and the physicists and mathematicians who dreamed them up. But a young academic named James Owen Weather ... read more

15th January 2013 10:12With the news that HMV is expected to go into administration today and become the latest casualty in the battle between online and traditional stores, Rupert Eastell, Baker Tilly's Head of Retail , says this is yet another blow for the UK High Street: "As one of the best-known household names, the closure of HMV is likely to damage consumer confidence ev ... read more

19th December 2012 10:47Leading software and consultancy solutions organisation Casewise has strengthened its European presence with the renewal of its reseller partnership with A&P Consulting, a leading Italian governance systems organisation.   The renewed contract, which will run for the next three years, places A&P Consulting as the exclusive Italian distributor of C ... read more

19th November 2012 09:03Could you give a general overview of the gamification sector and why businesses should implement it? Gamification is an emerging business and social trend that has started being popularised as the next big thing in marketing.  Today’s use of the term seems to fluctuate between two major ideas: The ... read more

22nd October 2012 08:51easyJet, the UK’s largest airline, is today celebrating the inaugural flight from Birmingham Airport to Belfast International Airport. The new route will initially be a daily service, however from 29th October it will increase to two flights a day on weekdays, and one on weekends. It will mainly serve the region’s business passengers by providing flex ... read more

19th September 2012 08:26 Gas sensing instruments manufacturer, Cascade Technologies, which was backed by Panoramic Growth Equity (PGE), the leading equity investor in fast growing, entrepreneurial companies, in May 2011, today announced that it has been listed as one of Britain’s 100 fastest growing private technology companies. Tech Track 100 is produced by Fast Track. Stirlin ... read more

12th September 2012 10:29LCP has today published its annual FTSE 250 Executive Pensions Survey 2012. The survey provides a comprehensive analysis of FTSE 250 executive pensions, looking at how they have changed in format and size over the past two years.   The 2012 survey demonstrates that the cost of pensions within the average remuneration package of a FTSE 250 executive has fallen by ... read more

5th September 2012 13:42Pioneering cleaning brand Ecover has today announced the creation of the world's largest green cleaning product company with the acquisition of San Francisco-based Method - leaders in premium planet friendly and design-driven home, fabric and personal care products. Joining forces on a mission to make green the new normal, the acquisition will see the two companies benefit fro ... read more

By Stan Gibson
23rd August 2012 09:59As the patent trial between Samsung and Apple continues, Samsung moved to preclude Apple from either eliciting testimony or attorney comment on Samsung's failure to call certain witnesses to testify at trial. In its motion, Samsung asserted that permitting such testimony would be prejudicial and would be inappropriate because the district court limited the parties to a 25-hour trial time l ... read more

14th August 2012 08:53 Banking industry reforms and weak growth will keep bank equity returns at around 10%, but reduced equity costs and renewed investor confidence could allow a steady return to economic profitability and a strong recovery in share prices, according to a new PwC report, “Banking industry reform – A new equilibrium”, launched today.  While expectations ... read more

By Stan Gibson
28th July 2012 13:02 Defendants filed a motion to exclude the expert testimony of plaintiff's expert on damages, including both lost profits and a reasonable royalty. The district court began its analysis by noting the Daubert standards for expert reports and then addressed the question of the reasonable royalty methodology used by plaintiff's expert. The district court then noted it was tr ... read more

17th July 2012 09:51 TradingScreen Inc. (TradingScreen), the leading independent provider of liquidity, trading and investment technology via SaaS, today announced that it has signed a partnership agreement with IlliquidX, an innovative independent financial services ... read more

By Stan Gibson
6th July 2012 17:02 Last December, the district court in the Northern District of California denied Apple's motion for a preliminary injunction. Apple had moved for the preliminary injunction based on alleged infringement of three design patents and one utility patent. After the denial of the preliminary injunction motion, Apple appealed the order to the Federal Circuit. The Federal Circuit affirm ... read more

By Haider Ali
4th July 2012 09:53Barclays bank has been caught with its hand in the cookie jar and severely penalised for its role in a derivative scandal that most definitely involves many high street banks on both sides of the Atlantic.  Their reputation was tarnished yesterday (28 June) when the Financial Services Authority barrelled a two-hundred and ninety million pound fine for trying to rig the London Interbank Of ... read more

By Dezan Shira & Associates
28th June 2012 09:21 After going through four drafts and numerous debates over the past three years, Vietnam’s National Assembly officially ratified the country’s new Labor Code (revised) during an official meeting on June 18, 2012. In general, the new Labor Code is seen as heavily favoring employees over employers, and is expected to have a considerable impact on the Vietnamese job mar ... read more

15th June 2012 09:18 Palatine Private Equity (Palatine) has announced the appointment of two leading business figures to its Executive Advisory Board in a move that brings a wealth of industry knowledge and experience across financial services; pharmaceutical; healthcare and the outsourced services sectors. Ian Darby and Michael Fort join Palatine’s experienced advisory board, which al ... read more

8th June 2012 15:35 Westwing, a leading international shopping club for home & living, today announced it has received $50million in funding in a financing round led by growth equity investor Summit Partners, with participation from existing investors Access Industries, Holtzbrinck Ventures, Investment AB Kinnevik and Rocket Internet. With this substantial capital inje ... read more

By Dezan Shira & Associates
7th June 2012 10:02 In order to fully implement the “Regulation on Work-Related Injury Insurances (Order of the State Council No.586, hereinafter referred as the ‘Regulation’),” the Chinese government issued the “Notice on Issues Regarding Individual Income Tax for Compensations of Work-Related Injury Insurances (caishui [2012] No.40, hereinafter referred ... read more

By Steven Golick & Andrea Lockhart
5th June 2012 09:40 The Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (the “CCAA”) can be a powerful tool for a debtor to obtain a breathing space in an attempt to restructure.  When good faith efforts are made towards a plan of arrangement, secured creditors can be and usually are stayed from pursuing remedies.  Howe ... read more

30th May 2012 11:33 Oman’s first Islamic bank, Bank Nizwa, has successfully closed its initial public offering (IPO). The flotation was 11 times over-subscribed and raised RO 681 million (US$ 1.77 billion (subject to reconciliation)) from 37,084 applications, making it Oman's second largest IPO and largest IPO of a financial institution in Oman. ... read more

By Marco Azzaro
30th May 2012 09:03 Several franchising brands are beginning to view the Vietnamese market more favorably than in past years. According to the country’s Ministry of Industry and Trade, up to 70 foreign brands have registered their franchising business in Vietnam and franchising growth is up 30 percent. Most of them are consumer brands focused on youth and middle class consumers. Br ... read more

By Steven Golick & Patrick Riesterer
28th May 2012 09:37 Section 11.2 of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (“CCAA”) gives the Canadian court explicit authority to grant a priority charge for amounts owing to a DIP Lender; however, the section provides that the charge may not be granted to secure an obligation that exists before the order is made. Section 1 ... read more

By Andrea Lockhart & Steven Golick
24th May 2012 10:46 Recently in Kitchener Frame Limited (Re),(1) the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) (“Court”) upheld the use of broad releases in the context of proposal proceedings under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada) (the ... read more

22nd May 2012 10:01 Deficits in FTSE350 companies’ pension funds have soared to an alarming £92 billion, according to latest estimates, thanks largely to the escalating turmoil in the eurozone. With the crisis on the continent deepening, the pension vacuum in Britain is growing at a staggering speed as annuity rates are being forced to an all time low. ... read more

By Dezan Shira & Associates
21st May 2012 11:05 India’s Ministry of Labor and Employment in the lower house of Parliament has given the information that, as per the amended section of paragraph 69 under paragraph 83 of Employees’ Provident Fund Scheme (1952), overseas workers are permitted to withdraw the entire amount standing to their credit in the fund in the following situations:   ... read more

18th May 2012 14:36 Clayton Euro Risk (CER) has just celebrated its fifth anniversary with a record business year in 2011. CER was previously known as Euro Risk Management and was sold to Clayton in 2007. CER operates in Europe, Middle East and Australasia markets as part of a global Clayton business. 2011 – A record year following 5 years of continual ... read more

By Marco Azzaro
14th May 2012 09:07 Vietnam’s government has made some important changes to the country’s tax regulations over the first four months of 2012, and has issued Circular 06, which took effect from March 1, providing a detailed guidance on some key changes to VAT rules. The government has underlined that VAT is enforceable on interest from loan agreements betwee ... read more

11th May 2012 10:14 IMAP, the global partnership of leading M&A and corporate finance firms, has broken into the top three in the world for deal volumes worth up to $500 million, the Thomson Reuters mid-market league table reveals. IMAP, of which Clearwater Corporate Finance is the UK partner, leapt from 10th to third in the ranking, with only gl ... read more

10th May 2012 09:13 www.moneyontoast.com, the financial supersite that sells and advises on a full range of financial products directly online, launched today. Money on Toast provides a safe, secure online solution where you can buy and trade investment, pension, mortgage and protection products from the whole of the financial ... read more

By Nhung Le
9th May 2012 14:10 On April 10, 2012, the Prime Minister of Vietnam promulgated Decision No. 19/2012/QD-TTg regarding the establishment of a border gate economic zone in Mong Cai, Quang Ninh Province. The Mong Cai Border Gate Economic Zone includes all of Mong Cai City and the surrounding communes; the Hai Ha Industrial Zone – Seaport; Quang Ha town and some commune ... read more

By Dezan Shira & Associates
9th May 2012 14:08In an attempt to soften the blow of the General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR), India’s Finance Ministry is considering postponing the implementation of the new regime and may completely exempt small firms and individuals. Specifically, there are reports suggesting that the Finance Ministry may exempt transactions or tax-saving arrangements less than Rs. 15 crore to ensure that ... read more