Demand for global energy resources has made the energy industry an attractive target for private equity investment. According to a 2013 report by Bain & Company, the strength of recent fundraising activity by PE funds indicates that energy investments will be popular in years to come.1 Within the energy industry, the most attractive area for…
Year: 2014
Denver Merchandise and “Make-whole provisions”
Earlier this year the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit added another take on “make-whole provisions” in bankruptcy law when it held that, absent language to the contrary, prepayment penalties may not be included in the claims of lenders who accelerate their borrowers’ notes.1 “Make-whole provisions”, and related “no-call provisions”, are important mechanisms…
Dilemma for Big Four Auditors in China in the Midst of Conflicting Laws
On January 22, 2014, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Administrative Law Judge Cameron Elliot censured Chinese affiliates of the “Big Four” accounting firms (Ernst & Young LLP, KPMG LLP, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, and Deloitte LLP) along with BDO China Dahua CPA Co., Ltd. for willful violation of Section 106(e) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002…
Private Equity Funds’ New Tax Challenge: Tax Breaks Through Monitoring Fees
For years, regulators have scrutinized the tax practices of private equity firms on several fronts. One relatively recent example occurred in 2012 when the New York Attorney General led an investigation regarding private equity funds’ conversion of certain management fees into investments that are eligible for more favorable tax treatment, also known as fee waiver…
Marijuana and Banks II
On August 29, 2013 Deputy Attorney General James Cole issued a memo concerning enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act “in light of state ballot initiatives that legalize under state law the possession of small amounts and provide for the regulation of marijuana production, processing, and sale.”1 The memo noted that “the federal government has traditionally…
WhatsApp Shows What’s Possible for Venture Capital Investors
WhatsApp is a cross-platform messaging service that is available on Internet-enabled devices. The app allows users to send messages via the Internet to other users of the app. The big selling point is that it costs 99 cents per year, with no added charges no matter where in the world a user sends a message….
South Korea’s Grand Plan: Startup and Venture Capital Steering the Future Economy
Start-ups have been a new force for the economies of many technologically advanced countries in recent years, more notably after the beginning of smartphone/ applications era with the many application start-ups that have an expansive platform to connect with customers. The number of Korean start-ups has almost doubled to over 28,000 from just over a…
Unpaid Internships and Intellectual Property Rights
Are unpaid internships still worth the trouble? For an early stage startup, the offer of free work may seem invaluable. Although unpaid interns may aide a startups bank account, hosting one may leave you open to severe future legal consequences. According to The Department of Labor, the following six legal criteria must be met in…
New Faces in Venture Capital
Often, when we think of the people involved in financial markets, images of old, stodgy men come to mind. But this is not usually the case, especially in today’s modern venture capital markets. Especially in the technology industry, venture capitalists hope to get in on the ground floor of startups that will become “the next…
Google’s $3.2 Billion Acquisition of Nest is a Big Win for Silicon Valley Venture Capitalists, Signals Search Giant’s Increasing Presence
On January 13, 2014, Google announced it was purchasing Nest Labs, known for making “smart” home thermostats, for $3.2 billion.1 The acquisition was Google’s biggest since a 2012 purchase of another hardware maker, Motorola.2 The US Federal Trade Commission approved the deal in early February.3 Google’s purchase of Nest produced exceptional returns for several Silicon…