With all the talk about executive pay here at home, it’s interesting to note that Switzerland just passed a set of tough executive pay rules. The new rules allow shareholders at Swiss-listed companies a binding vote each year on the total compensation of boards of directors and senior management, as well as a total ban on "golden parachutes" and executives being paid … [Read more...]
International Carbon Exchange Markets. A Long Way to Go.
I’m on my flight back from Washington D.C., where I spent the last two days visiting with the White House and with members of Congress. The reason for my visit was to discuss the potential for an international carbon exchange market. It’s a hotly contested issue (so to speak) that has generated a great deal of controversy in the U.S. The concept of an international carbon … [Read more...]
Sovereign Debt Litigation on the Rise.
On Wednesday, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will hear argument in a sovereign debt lawsuit that could have a major impact on world debt markets. The case centers on a group of investors who sued Argentina seeking payment for $1.3 billion relating to bonds that the country defaulted on in 2001. While the court has already sided with investors on … [Read more...]
Individual Liability for Foreign Subsidiary Misconduct. The Logical Next Step.
Yesterday's post centered on how important it is for U.S. companies to keep tabs on their foreign subsidiaries. Well, the Conglomerate blog has an excellent post on the increase of foreign subsidiaries that have entered guilty pleas with the U.S. government for misconduct that took place after the financial crisis. What's interesting about the rise in foreign subsidiaries … [Read more...]
The Cayman Islands: Paradise for Foreign Workers. Not So Much for Tax Dodgers.
There's been a sharp rise in the number of foreign workers in the Cayman Islands. This according to a recent report from Justin Harper of Reuters. Despite increased taxes, the number of foreign workers in the island paradise has gone from 19,927 at the end of 2011 to nearly 21,000 by December 2012. The increase is largely the result of less stringent immigration laws that now … [Read more...]
The U.S. Should Focus on Globalizing Domestic Small Businesses.
In the past few weeks I’ve worked with a number of small business clients looking to go international. In what I perceive as a definite sign of a strengthening economy, the increase in small businesses looking to capitalize on international business opportunities has skyrocketed in the past six months. Increasingly, these international business enterprises are getting … [Read more...]
EU Banks Resisting Stricter Transparency Laws.
European banks are facing the threat of having to reveal their taxes and profits on a country-by-country basis in the latest twist to the EU negotiations over rules to make banks safer. The European parliament is pressing for the tougher disclosure regime along with a demand for strict curbs on bankers’ bonuses as part of the law implementing the Basel III international … [Read more...]
Clean Energy Cases Are Heating Up the World Trade Organization.
I'll be heading to Washington, D.C. next week to meet with White House officials and members of Congress to discuss the President's clean energy agenda. So it's no surprise that I’m a big advocate of the global clean energy industry, which last year alone generated almost $269 Billion in international business. In somewhat of a tribute to the growing importance of clean … [Read more...]
International Trade Skyrockets in Miami Customs District.
The venerable Mimi Whitefield of the Miami Herald is reporting that 2012 was a record-breaking year for international trade in the Miami Customs District with $124.73 billion worth of trade being exchanged. According to Whitefield, Miami district exports increased to a record $73.3 billion, up nearly 6 percent from the previous year, and imports totaled a record $51.4 … [Read more...]
SEC Takes Immediate Action in Freezing OffShore Accounts Tied to Heinz Insider-Trading.
Yesterday it was announced that Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway partnered with Brazilian equity fund 3G to purchase iconic American ketchup maker Heinz in a blockbuster $23 Billion deal. Just a day after the deal, the SEC obtained an emergency court order to freeze assets in a Zurich, Switzerland-based trading account that was used to reap more than $1.7 million from … [Read more...]