Corporate governance - Vigil

Shinsei Bank has engaged Morgan Stanley to help engineer a “poison pill” takeover defence after the company was left reeling by a $1.1bn hostile stakebuilding approach from Japan’s biggest internet brokerage.

Index-tracking funds that employ environmental, social and governance metrics are attracting record-breaking inflows, as rising numbers of investors adopt strategies that go beyond achieving the best financial return.

When the SEC approved Nasdaq’s new board diversity rules earlier this month, it was yet another sign that the time has come to open public company boardrooms to directors with a broader set of backgrounds, experiences, and identities. Now more than ever, diversity on corporate boards is a business imperative.

Consensus forecasts compiled by Bloomberg predict a 5.3 per cent year-over-year increase in the CPI index for August, right in line with the 5.4 per cent pace recorded the previous month.

Freshworks Inc is aiming for a nearly $9 billion valuation in a U.S. initial public offering, according to a regulatory filing by the business and customer engagement software company on Monday.

Exxon is caving to the expectations of activist investors and a market that is looking for ESG (or at least the optics of ESG) investments.

On August 19, 2021, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) filed an immediately effective rule change (Rule Proposal) restoring a transaction value and materiality threshold for related party transactions that require independent directors’ review.

Three media companies tied to exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui have agreed to pay $539 million to settle regulatory claims they violated investor-protection laws when they raised money from over 5,000 investors.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has argued for a while that higher U.S. inflation is largely driven by temporary factors unique to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The company, which caters to small and mid-cap companies, said on Tuesday that the initial public offering would take place later this month on London’s Aim and would support its expansion plans, including a push into Europe.

In an important decision this week, the Delaware Court of Chancery permitted a Caremark duty-of-oversight claim to proceed against the directors of the Boeing Company. Stockholder plaintiffs sued Boeing’s board, seeking to recover costs and economic losses associated with the crash of two 737 MAX jetliners.

Rivian, one of the newcomers, filed paperwork for an initial public offering on August 27th and is reportedly seeking a valuation of at least $70bn

The online pharmacy has been given estimates that it could fetch a valuation of $9-10 billion in a public listing, people aware of the matter said.

In a company memo Thomson Reuters Corp, the parent company of Reuters, said a search will begin shortly for a new Reuters president.

Intuit will buy email marketing company Mailchimp for $12 billion in cash and stock, the companies said Monday.

On August 24, 2021, the SEC announced a settled enforcement action against Pennsylvania-based Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (HCSG) and its former CFO for accounting and disclosure violations that resulted in the company reporting inflated earnings per share (EPS) that met research analysts’ consensus estimates for multiple quarters.

Railroad operator Kansas City Southern on Sunday scrapped a $30bn deal with Canadian National, opting instead for a lower offer from Canadian Pacific worth $27bn which may face fewer regulatory hurdles.

Forge Global Inc., an online marketplace for buying and selling shares of private firms, plans to go public by merging with a special-purpose acquisition company.

ViacomCBS Inc. is revamping the operations of its Paramount Pictures movie and television production unit as part of a broader shake-up of the management there that will give television veteran David Nevins a larger role, people familiar with the matter said.