Written by: Jay Gould, James Campbell and Sam Pearse And so Greece paid the bond repayments due on Tuesday.  Some claim that making such a payment was a no-brainer on the basis that the otherwise ensuing litigation and cross-defaults on other bonds was unthinkable.  Other sources claim that the noise coming from Greece over last weekend was that the payment would be made and that it was never in doubt.  Yet initial Reuters reports on Tuesday morning of the bond repayment remained unconfirmed for a number of hours, with the payment due to be made in the afternoon. There remains...
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Written by: Samuel Pearse and James Campbell In the grand scheme of Greece’s debt problems, the sum of approximately €450m may appear modest but tomorrow (15 May) the next repayment of principal is due on foreign law bonds issued by the Hellenic Republic.  In a high stakes version of Morton’s Fork, whether the fractured Greek government decides to pay or default there are potentially undesirable outcomes. As the bonds due for repayment are governed by English law the Greek government will find it difficult to impose its own will upon the bondholders.  Followers of...
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Written by:  Jay B. Gould, Michael Wu and Peter Chess Note: Pillsbury and KPMG, along with the California Hedge Fund Association, will be sponsoring a “Managers Only” event on the JOBS Act and the new world of “general solicitation” for Funds on June 14. The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (the “JOBS Act” or the “Act”), signed into law by President Obama on April 5, 2012, seeks to encourage economic growth through the easing of certain restrictions on capital formation and by improving access to capital.  The JOBS Act contains a...
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We are very pleased to announce that Henry Liu is joining our New York office today as a Finance Partner and as leader of the Financial Institutions & Infrastructure Teams for Greater China and Asia. Henry has enormous reach within business, banking and government in China and is the former general counsel and director general at the China Securities Regulatory Commission.  Henry will provide valuable assistance to the Pillsbury Investment Funds group on the structuring of investment funds in China as well as the movement of capital from China into investment funds outside of...
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by Joseph J. Kaufman New guidance outlines key rules for the new confidential review option for initial public offerings by emerging growth companies in the United States.  The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (also known as the JOBS Act) became a U.S. federal law on April 5, 2012 and immediately authorized a confidential submission option for registered securities offerings in the United States by emerging growth companies (EGCs). The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s Division of Corporation Finance staff promptly announced its procedure for accepting confidential...
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The Form PF (PF is short for “private funds”) is a new Securities and Exchange Commission reporting form for investment advisers to private funds that have at least $150 million in private fund assets under management.  Comprising 42 pages and divided into 4 sections with corresponding subsections, Form PF may appear daunting at first.  The task of completing and filing the Form also entails categorizations, specific and nuanced reporting requirements and Form-specific calculations, not to mention the fact that improperly completed Forms may be delayed or even...
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Written by: Jay B. Gould and Peter Chess On April 18, 2012, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) voted to adopt rules defining “swap dealer,” “security-based swap dealer,” “major swap participant,” and “major security-based swap participant,” among other terms, as mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”).  The Dodd-Frank Act assigns to the SEC the regulatory authority for security-based...
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Written by: Jay B. Gould and Peter Chess On April 5, 2012, the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (the “JOBS Act” or the “Act”) was signed into law, creating a new regulatory on-ramp for emerging growth companies going public.  The JOBS Act also includes provisions that require the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) to undertake various initiatives, including rulemaking and studies touching on capital formation, disclosure and registration requirements.  Title II of the Act affects offerings by issuers pursuant to Regulation D under...
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By: Louis A. Bevilacqua, Joseph R. Tiano, Jr., David S. Baxter, Ali Panjwani and K. Brian Joe On April 5, 2012, President Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act), a bill with widespread bipartisan support and assembled from a combination of legislative initiatives introduced throughout 2011 targeting smaller companies and focusing on cheaper capital raising and job creation. We discuss the key provisions of the JOBS Act and their impact on these companies and securities offerings. The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act) is a consolidation of several...
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Written by Jay Gould, Michael Wu and Peter Chess The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) recently amended its registration rules regarding Commodity Pool Operators (“CPOs”) and Commodity Trading Advisors (“CTAs”), which will require many general partners and managers of private investment funds that previously relied on an exemption from registration to now register with the CFTC.  After a public comment period in which the industry overwhelmingly supported the continuation of these exemptions, the CFTC decided to rescind the CPO...
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