Search results

The purpose of this paper is to highlight not only the pre‐closing, but also the continuing due diligence required of all parties in private placement life insurance or annuities invested in hedge funds.

This technical paper describes the due diligence process for these high‐end offerings, illustrating key concerns through case studies.

Recent events have caused the advantages, disadvantages and timing issues to crystallize, together with what issues require pre‐closing and post‐closing due diligence.

This paper provides timely guidance from experts approaching the issues from multiple disciplines – law, accounting, and financial analysis – to yield a comprehensive analysis of the position of all parties to the transaction.

The following is an introductory profile of the fastest growing firms over the three-year period of the study listed by corporate reputation ranking order. The business activities in which the firms are engaged are outlined to provide background information for the reader.

Although the focus of this issue is on investment in British industry and hence we are particularly concerned with debt and shares, the transactions and holdings in these cannot be separated from the range of other financial claims, including property, that are available to investors. In consequence this article focuses on an overview of the financial system including in Section 2 a presentation of the flow of funds matrix of the financial claims that make up the system. We also examine more closely the role of the financial institutions that are part of the system by utilising the sources and uses statements for three sectors, non‐bank financial institutions, personal sector and industrial and commercial companies. Then we provide, in Section 3, a discussion of the various financial claims investors can hold. In Section 4 we give a portrayal of the portfolio disposition of each of the major types of financial institution involved in the market for company securities specifically insurance companies (life and general), pension funds, unit and investment trusts, and in Section 4 a market study is performed for ordinary shares, debentures and preference shares for holdings, net acquisitions and purchases/sales. A review of some of the empirical evidence on the financial institutions is presented in Section 5 and Section 6 is by way of a conclusion. The data series extend in the main from 1966 to 1981, though at the time of writing, some 1981 data are still unavailable. In addition, the point needs to be made that the samples have been constantly revised so that care needs to be exercised in the use of the data.

Since the initiation of the share split reform by the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) in 2005, the private placement has become the major source of raising equity after IPO. The purpose of this paper is to investigate why listed firms in China prefer private placements compared to other options of raising capital.

The ordinary least squares regression, the piecewise regression and the cross‐sectional regression analysis were undertaken to investigate the determinants and characteristics of the seasoned‐equity offerings announcement effects. Probit regression analysis was taken to estimate the probability of a firm choosing private placements.

The authors find positive significant announcement abnormal returns for private placement. The findings also indicate that operating performance deteriorates immediately after announcement and poor operating performance is more likely to be contributed by large size portfolios, which suggests size effect.

The paper's evidence contributes to an understanding of the wider implication of the share split reform undertaken by the CSRC.

The paper provides insights for policy makers in China and around the world who have and wish to adopt similar practices within their jurisdictions. Similar research can be conducted in other emerging markets to enable better understanding and implications of seasoned equity offerings on firm financial performance.

The paper is novel in regard to the data and the wider research paradigm used.

Investigates the differences in protocols between arbitral tribunals and courts, with particular emphasis on US, Greek and English law. Gives examples of each country and its way of using the law in specific circumstances, and shows the variations therein. Sums up that arbitration is much the better way to gok as it avoids delays and expenses, plus the vexation/frustration of normal litigation. Concludes that the US and Greek constitutions and common law tradition in England appear to allow involved parties to choose their own judge, who can thus be an arbitrator. Discusses e‐commerce and speculates on this for the future.

The Bureau of Economics in the Federal Trade Commission has a three-part role in the Agency and the strength of its functions changed over time depending on the preferences and ideology of the FTC’s leaders, developments in the field of economics, and the tenor of the times. The over-riding current role is to provide well considered, unbiased economic advice regarding antitrust and consumer protection law enforcement cases to the legal staff and the Commission. The second role, which long ago was primary, is to provide reports on investigations of various industries to the public and public officials. This role was more recently called research or “policy R&D”. A third role is to advocate for competition and markets both domestically and internationally. As a practical matter, the provision of economic advice to the FTC and to the legal staff has required that the economists wear “two hats,” helping the legal staff investigate cases and provide evidence to support law enforcement cases while also providing advice to the legal bureaus and to the Commission on which cases to pursue (thus providing “a second set of eyes” to evaluate cases). There is sometimes a tension in those functions because building a case is not the same as evaluating a case. Economists and the Bureau of Economics have provided such services to the FTC for over 100 years proving that a sub-organization can survive while playing roles that sometimes conflict. Such a life is not, however, always easy or fun.

The Insurance Act was passed in the Czech Republic in 1991. It provided for the establishment of new insurance companies and competition between them. The Ministry of Finance was authorised to supervise insurance activities. Amendments to the Act in 1993 covered the formation and financial placement of technical provisions and made changes to insurance company accounting rules. The second important transitional step was taken in 1999 with the passage of the new Insurance Act and a motor third party liability insurance Act with the aim of harmonising Czech insurance law with the EU legal framework. This harmonisation process should be finished by the end of 2002.

The people of Taiwan are no strangers to natural disasters; the island sits astride the junction point of the Philippine and Eurasian tectonic plates, making it a frequent victim of sometimes calamitous earthquakes. The island also lies in the path of yearly typhoons that buffet the island, risking life and property damage. These natural disasters have become a fact of life for the Taiwanese people, and the population has long looked to the government for leadership in ensuring disaster preparation, relief, and recovery. This chapter is focused on the leadership qualities exhibited by public administrators in the field of emergency management in Taiwan, and how they navigate the uncharted waters of this new field in a traditional culture. Beginning with a general examination of the cultural and societal influences on the position of leader in Taiwan society and the qualities demanded of that position, the research narrows to the specific field of emergency management and how administration in this realm is accomplished given (a) the relative newness of the field itself and (b) the cultural barriers in Taiwan to the widespread embrace of such disaster mitigation initiatives. The struggle of Taiwan public administrators to adopt disaster preparedness programs in the nation presents itself as a unique opportunity to examine how leaders in such situations walk the razor’s edge between doing what is necessary to ensure that the population have access to the advantages of the modern world while respecting the cultural sensitivities that can often stand in the way of administrative progress.