36th IBA International Financial Law Conference
15 May - 17 May 2019
Session information
Market sounding under the Market Abuse Regulation – more procedures, less certainty?
Thursday 16 May (0945 - 1100)
Committee(s)
Banking & Financial Law Committee
(Lead)
Financial Services Section
(Lead)
Legal Practice Division
(Lead)
Securities Law Committee
(Lead)
Description
Confidential communication with investors prior to the launch of a placement of securities or a public takeover offer was common practice before the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) came into force. For these ‘early look’, ‘pilot fishing’ or ‘market sounding’ interactions the market had developed commonly accepted procedures to conduct conversations in a legally permissible manner. This has helped issuers, officers of securities, bidders and their advisers to get a better understanding of the feasibility and possible conditions of contemplated transactions. MAR has introduced complex rules and administrative procedures for market sounding that raise a number of yet unresolved questions. Did the new regime result in more certainty? Has the scope and quality of investor feedback improved? If you find these rules burdensome, is it possible to skip this ‘safe harbour’? This panel will analyse the new procedures and evaluate how the market can deal with them to avoid pitfalls while ensuring that valuable feedback reaches issuers and other market participants.
Session / Workshop Chair(s)
| Andreas Meyer | Deutsche Bank AG, Frankfurt am Main, Germany |
| Jan Willem Hoevers | De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek, Amsterdam, Netherlands |
Speakers
| Sophie Cornette de Saint Cyr | Bredin Prat, Paris, France |
| Laura Holleman | Goldman Sachs, London, England |