Insights
SEC Staff Issues No-Action Letter for DTC’s Tokenization Pilot
Software as a Risk in Company Acquisitions
BIOSECURE Act Becomes Law, Limiting Grants With “Biotechnology Companies of Concern”
Resource
The Latham FPI Guide
Updated guide includes the topics that are of most interest to foreign private issuers and their advisors when engaging in US capital markets transactions.
Latham in Focus Video Series
The Book of Jargon Series – Word of the Day®
The Book of Jargon® is a series of practice area and industry-specific glossaries published by Latham & Watkins.
Bid Rigging
when contractors engaging in Competitive Bidding for a project manipulate the bids or bid process so as to ensure which bid will be accepted, effectively increasing prices. Bid Rigging is a violation of US antitrust law.
Spudding In
nothing to do with potatoes, this term refers to the very beginning of drilling operations of a new well.
Angel Investor
an investor (usually an affluent individual as opposed to a corporation) that provides capital for a business start-up, usually in exchange for Preference Shares, convertible debt or Equity ownership. Think “Dragons Den” (or "Shark Tank" for our US readership), a series of reality television programmes broadcast internationally featuring entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas in order to secure investment finance from a panel of insufferably smug Angel Investor/Venture Capitalists (the eponymous “dragons” or "sharks").
Brownfield
a site undergoing construction that was previously used for potentially environmentally harmful activities, such as manufacturing (as opposed to farming or residential use).
In contrast, see Greenfield.
Sight Draft
a written demand for immediate payment. For example, when a beneficiary of a Letter of Credit decides to make a draw on the Letter of Credit, the beneficiary will submit a Sight Draft to the Issuing Bank demanding payment under the L/C.
In each episode of Connected With Latham, we discuss ideas, developments, and trends shaping the global economy.
HM Treasury Proposes to Significantly Reduce Scope of UK BMR
Under the proposals, only designated benchmarks or benchmark administrators would be regulated.
OCC Continues to Move Digital Assets Into the Banking System
The OCC affirmed that certain cryptoasset activities are part of, or incidental to, the business of banking and conditionally approved five national trust bank charters for digital asset entities.
Federal Agencies Move to Return the Endangered Species Act to 2019 Interpretation
Proposed rules would reverse Biden-era regulations under the ESA and return to the regulatory framework implemented during the first Trump administration.
OCC and FDIC Withdraw From Leveraged Lending Guidance
Banks subject to the Agencies’ jurisdiction will now be expected to manage leveraged lending using general risk management principles for safe and sound lending.
Privy Council Issues Pivotal Judgment on Misrepresentation
The Credit Suisse judgment has significant implications for claims in deceit.
SEC Staff Issues No-Action Letter for Fuse Crypto Token
The NAL provides incremental clarity for innovators in the digital asset space and reduces legal risk for similarly structured rewards tokens.
Less Tickbox, More Toolbox: 4 Key Takeaways From Latest SFO Guidance on Corporate Compliance Programmes
Internal controls must be tailored, proportionate, and risk-based — not just a “paper exercise.”
Trump Administration Proposes New Rule Defining Waters of the United States
The proposed rule would scale back federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act.