The Guardian Quotes Jasper Helder on Proposals to Toughen UK Company Takeover Laws

The Guardian has quoted Akin Gump international trade partner Jasper Helder in the article “Chinese threat prompts calls for UK to toughen company takeover laws.” The article reports on an attempt to put four Chinese government-backed members on the board of a British technology company and demands for clearer powers to intervene on national security grounds after a takeover.

According to The Guardian, some members of Parliament feel that proposed changes to the takeover rules do not go far enough and they want the government’s intervention powers to stretch beyond the point of an acquisition when the investor activities pose a threat to national security. On the other side, though, are concerns that the new proposals may worsen the already tense relations with China over its handling of the coronavirus outbreak.

Helder said the current system of post-offer undertakings under the takeover code “is clearly insufficient to hold state party investors to account post-investment.” At the same time, though, “subjecting post-acquisition activities to review would make UK intervention powers more wide-reaching than potentially any other country, including the U.S.”

Helder pointed out that it is not clear “what types of post-acquisition activity could be subject to review and whether the possibility of review could persist for a potentially unlimited period of time. That said, hostile actors do seem increasingly happy to sit in the long grass before implementing their intended strategy.” Helder added that the proposals would provide the UK with remedies beyond anything proposed by the European Union.