The Freshfields Podcast Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
-
- Business
-
We are a global law firm with a long-standing track record of successfully supporting the world’s leading national and multinational corporations, financial institutions and governments on ground-breaking and business-critical mandates.
-
Tax Matters: Spring Budget 2024 – The Hunt for Blue October
The UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, has delivered the Spring Budget 2024.
In a rowdy House of Commons, the Chancellor delivered what will be his last Spring Budget before a UK general election widely expected to take place in autumn this year. Further details on some of these measures are expected to follow on Tax Administration and Maintenance Day 2024 – confirmed as taking place on 18 April – but there were plenty of interesting points (and politics) in the tax policies included in this wave of announcements.
In our latest podcast Jill Gatehouse, Emily Szasz, Josh Critchlow and David Haughey from our London tax team discuss some of the tax measures they found the most noteworthy in the Spring Budget 2024, including:
Replacing the current tax rules for non-UK domiciled individuals (so-called ‘non doms’) with a new residence-based regime;
Changes to the transfer of assets abroad rules following the Supreme Court decision in Fisher to ensure this anti-avoidance regime cannot be bypassed by individuals transferring assets offshore via a UK company;
The introduction of Reserved Investor Funds (RIFs), a new type of UK investment fund in the form of an unauthorised contractual scheme; and
Other changes to the UK’s tax code, including:
Further reductions to NICs, benefitting both employed and self-employed workers;
On stamp duty/SDRT, new guidance on recently-enacted legislation restricting the application of the higher rate charge on the issue and certain transfers of UK shares and securities into clearance services or depositary receipt systems – but nothing further on the Stamp Taxes on Shares Modernisation proposal;
Delaying the sunsetting of the Energy Profits Levy, so that it will end in 2029 (or earlier if energy prices fall below levels set by the previously-announced Energy Security Investment Mechanism);
Establishing a new R&D tax relief expert panel tasked with ensuring relevant HMRC guidance remains up-to-date as industry develops; and
Consulting on the introduction a new UK ISA, giving individuals a £5,000 annual allowance to invest in certain UK-focussed assets on a tax-free basis. -
No Worse Off #1: Overview of current restructuring trends
The first episode of our new restructuring podcast series, No Worse Off, which provides legal and commercial insights, and practical tips, on the world of restructuring.
Podcast hosts Lindsay Hingston, and Emma Gateaud, in our London office, cover recent trends including the looming wall of debt maturities, liability management, contested restructuring plans and the increasing use of parallel/interlocking processes in a cross-border context. -
Essential Antitrust #38: What businesses can expect from China’s revised merger control regime
In January 2024, China implemented significant changes to its merger control thresholds – marking the first revisions in 16 years. Coupled with last year's amendments to the Anti-Monopoly Law, they represent a comprehensive revamp of China’s merger control regime.
In this episode of our Essential Antitrust podcast, host Jenn Mellott is joined by Freshfields’ Ninette Dodoo and Laurent Bougard and RuiMin’s Hazel Yin to examine these changes and their impact on filing deals for regulatory clearance in China. Their discussion features critical insights into navigating the merger control process as well as addressing sectors at risk of increased scrutiny and underscoring broader regulatory issues, including national security reviews. -
Impressions from the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference – A MedTech Perspective
Listen to the latest episode of the Freshfields MedTech podcast as partner Vinita Kailasanath and Managing Director of Ivy Tree Advisors, Jonathan Olsen, discuss key MedTech hot topics coming out of this year’s J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.
-
Essential Antitrust #37: Antitrust in 2024: competition enforcement takes center stage
In our first Essential Antitrust podcast of 2024, host Jenn Mellott is joined by Alastair Chapman, Ninette Dodoo and Mark Sansom to explore some of the themes highlighted in “Global antitrust in 2024: 10 key themes”, our recent report on the biggest trends in antitrust for the year ahead.
With insights from the US, UK, EU and Asia, we predict how antitrust will continue to be used as a wide-ranging tool in 2024 – from aggressive enforcement targeted at digital markets and AI to novel theories of harm in M&A, and from risks and opportunities at the intersection of antitrust and sustainability to the expansive use of abuse and monopolization claims in antitrust damages actions to pursue general consumer or unfair competition issues.
Businesses that want to stay one step ahead will need a global strategy to navigate these evolving and dynamic challenges. -
Legends of Tech #1: Turing with Vint and Whit: Boris Feldman in conversation with Vinton G. Cerf and Whitfield Diffie
Boris Feldman, Freshfields Partner, interviews two of the most prominent pioneers of technology - Vinton G. Cerf, one of the ‘fathers of the internet’ and Whitfield Diffie, a leading inventor of public-key cryptography. Listen in for a fascinating discussion on the origin of technologies that have changed the course of history, and predictions for how technology will continue to change our futures.