Americas
Headlines
Mississippi changes its state flag
THE MAGNOLIA STATE this week became the last southern state to change its state flag, removing the Confederate battle flag which had formed part of the design. It will adopt a new flag, incorporating the words “In God We Trust” but excluding the so-called “stainless banner”. The 87-year-old widow of Medgar Evers, a murdered civil-rights icon,...
The pandemic shuts down a lifeline for Cuba
Editor’s note: Some of our covid-19 coverage is free for readers of The Economist Today, our daily newsletter. For more stories and our pandemic tracker, see our hub ALTHOUGH THE United States has embargoed Cuba’s economy since the 1960s, the flow of goods, money and people between them has never stopped. Often the interchange is carried out by mulas,...
AMLO and Trump plan a frenemies’ get-together
HISTORY WILL record the Mexican-American summit to take place on July 8th-9th as one of the odder ones. It will be a rare face-to-face meeting in the covid-19 era, bringing together leaders who are notably reluctant to promote social distancing. (Their countries have bigger caseloads as a result.) President Donald Trump has often bullied Mexico since...
Covid-19 gives Cartagena a chance to restrain tourism
Editor’s note: Some of our covid-19 coverage is free for readers of The Economist Today, our daily newsletter. For more stories and our pandemic tracker, see our hub FOR DECADES Colombia had trouble attracting tourists. Few wanted to visit a country where drug lords bombed passenger jets and guerrillas kidnapped ordinary citizens. The country became...
Ecuador is in intensive care, and a straitjacket
Editor’s note: Some of our covid-19 coverage is free for readers of The Economist Today, our daily newsletter. For more stories and our pandemic tracker, see our hub AT THE START of the covid-19 pandemic in Latin America in March and April, Ecuador offered the world Dantesque images of dead bodies dumped in the streets of Guayaquil, a tropical port...
Finance
Pendo Systems name Ruth Wandhöfer, a globally recognized banking expert, to their Board of Directors
Pendo Systems is proud to announce that Ruth Wandhöfer, Global Head of Regulatory and Market Strategy at Citi, has joined their board. Ms. Wandhöfer is a banking regulatory expert and one of the foremost authorities on transaction banking regulatory matters. Her reputation has been built around her ability to drive regulatory and industry dialogue...
Implications of the money laundering law reform
The amendment to the money laundering law approved in the first debate requires accountants, lawyers and real estate agents to report suspicious transactions made by their clients.Bill 19.951 reforming the Law on Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances, Drugs of Unauthorized Use, Related Activities, Legalization of Capital and Financing of Terrorism...
Wall Street finishes flat ahead of earnings season, key US-China meeting
It was a fairly flat session on Wall Street overnight, as investors exercised caution ahead of the first-quarter earnings season and a meeting between the US and Chinese presidents later this week. Investors will be focussed on the potentially tense meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping on Thursday and Friday, after Mr Trump held out the possibility...
GLC Advisors Strengthens Advisory and M&A Expertise with Addition of Senior Bankers
Addition of Several Industry Bankers Including Former St. Charles Capital Professionals Deepens Firm’s Expertise and Relationships Across Technology, FIG, Consumer, Retail and Energy IndustriesGLC Advisors & Co., LLC (“GLC Advisors”) is pleased to welcome nine seasoned M&A professionals, including former Partners and professionals of Denver based...
Columbia Threadneedle opens office in Chile
Columbia Threadneedle Investments has opened its first Latin American office in Santiago, Chile. As its first proprietary distribution hub for the Andes (Chile, Peru and Colombia), the new office will serve the asset manager’s institutional and wholesale clients in the region. Columbia Threadneedle has also appointed Santiago Zarauza Riestra...
Legal
Providing or Procuring Ed-Tech Products? Educate Yourself about Privacy Matters
A new wave of advancement in the education industry has emerged. Schools, universities and colleges are relying more on technology now than they ever have before – and this reliance on technology will only increase in the coming years. Educational institutions are using technological solutions to assist in teaching, engaging in discussions with their...
Diamond In The Rough: Mining as a potential bright spot in M&A
The mining sector has been one of the few bright spots in Canadian M&A since the COVID-19 pandemic drastically changed the landscape for transactions, with several large deals announced and continuing despite the pandemic. As with other business sectors, mining has been significantly impacted by regulations and the economic slowdown caused by the...
Purchasing Companies That Sell Technology to the Government: The Details Matter
Procurement contracts are increasingly used in both Canada and the United States (US), particularly with respect to technological services. Federal procurement expenditures for Canada amount to an average of CAD $22 billion in goods and services annually. Further, the US typically awards USD $500 billion in contracts annually, with Canadian companies...
Measuring The Impact Of COVID-19 On Canadian M&A
The future of M&A beyond the COVID-19 pandemic remains fiercely debated and quite unclear. We’ve already seen transactions and their underlying agreements change in a number of ways, including more scrutinized structures, and more detailed negotiations regarding contractual carve-outs, such as material adverse change and force majeure clauses....
Securing Equity in Unsecure Times
Since the beginning of March, 15 companies within the S&P/TSX Composite Index have gone to market to raise capital. All but one did so by raising debt. By comparison, of the largest LSE listed issuers, 23 have raised equity and 10 have raised debt. It is clear – European issuers are favouring equity during this...… Continue reading The...
Deals
PIMJ will change its name to PGIM Japan Co
Prudential Investment Management Japan Co. Ltd will rebrand to PGIM Japan Co. The name change takes effect on October 1, 2017. Prudential first opened its Tokyo office in 1998. Read More
JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs top Canadian M&A rankings as activity rises: Reuters
Canadian mergers and acquisitions got off to their strongest start in 17 years in 2017 as cross-border deal activity picked up pace, with JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and RBC taking the top three spots in the advisory rankings, Reuters reported. Foreign banks further consolidated their position in Canadian deal-making as companies looked beyond borders for...
Dyal Capital buys minority stake in credit investor Sound Point: Reuters
Dyal Capital Partners, the Neuberger Berman Group unit that takes minority stakes in hedge and private equity fund firms, has bought into credit investor Sound Point Capital LP, Reuters reported. Read More
PE-backed Cross MediaWorks launches One2oneMedia
Cross MediaWorks, a portfolio company of Lee Equity Partners LLC, has formed One2oneMedia. No financial terms were disclosed. One2onemedia will provide an addressable video business for agencies and advertisers in partnership with Multichannel Video Programming Distributors. Read More
Volatility drives Canadian companies to unload non-core assets: EY
Canadian companies are looking to sell non-core assets as a result of macroeconomic volatility, according to a new study by Ernst & Young (EY). A survey conducted for EY's 2017 Corporate Divestment Study found 73 percent of respondents were likely to pursue divestment strategies. Once divested, 51 percent reported the initiative led to valuations...
Acq Lite
Eni deal a testament to Abu Dhabi's attraction
March 12 (UPI) -- In what's nearly a $1 billion commitment, Italian energy company Eni said it made its Emirati debut in an agreement with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company.Eni signed agreements to acquire minority shares in the Lower Zakum, Umm Shaif and Nasr offshore fields from state-run ADNOC for a total fee of $875 million."The stakes in the two...
Statoil using mega-rig to tap frontier North Sea area
March 12 (UPI) -- Norwegian energy company Statoil will move a deepwater drilling rig to the North Sea to tap a prospect awarded more than 30 years ago, a regulator said Monday.The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate gave Statoil consent to move the Deepsea Atlantic drilling rig to a section of the North Sea to tap into a prospect awarded to the company...
German green energy segment Innogy divvied up
March 12 (UPI) -- German utility company E.ON is now in control of the renewable energy segment created by its rival, RWE, in a landmark, multi-billion dollar deal, they said.In a joint statement, E.ON said it reached an agreement in principle with RWE to acquire more than three quarters of the stakes in renewable energy entity Innogy, an offshoot from...
Russia test-fires Kinzhal hypersonic missile
March 11 (UPI) -- A Russian jet successfully test-lauched a hypersonic missile Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry said.The Kinzhal hypersonic missile was launched from an MiG-31 interceptor jet, which departed from an airfield in the Southern Military District, Russia's TASS News Agency reported."A MiG-31 fighter crew of the Russian Aerospace Forces...
Huntington Ingalls contracted for further repairs on USS Fitzgerald
March 9 (UPI) -- Huntington Ingalls was awarded a contract from the U.S. Navy to continue repairs on the USS Fitzgerald.The deal, announced Thursday by the Department of Defense, is valued at more than $77.5 million under the terms of a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract, which is a modification to a previous award.The modified contract between the U.S. Navy...