The City Code on Takeovers and Mergers 2009

22 September 2009

Open Letter
Robert Hingley, Director General,
The Panel on Takeovers and Mergers

Since its inception, 41 years ago, the Takeover Panel has acquired a reputation for operating flexibly and rapidly as new situations have arisen and market practice has developed.

It has dealt with over 8,000 published offers and a much greater total caseload. The Code has changed and expanded considerably over time to take account of changing market practice and conditions, but its basic principles, and its ability to react flexibly and promptly to changing circumstances, remain essentially unchanged.

Thus, although the economy has now moved into recession, the Code continues to evolve.  At the end of March 2009, a new edition of the Code was issued, amended to reflect in particular, the new arrangements concerning Electronic Communications implemented following consultation last year. In addition, the Code Committee has recently issued a Consultation Paper on the extension of disclosure requirements of Rule 8. This has been a subject about which there has been considerable debate in recent years.

This timely conference, now a well established event, will be especially useful in providing practitioners with a thorough examination of the Code as a whole, as well as keeping them up to date with the latest regulatory developments.

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