London is still considered the world’s pre-eminent financial centre, and is one of the most attractive international cities for foreign investment. One of the reasons for this is the high regard that the international business community has for the principles of the English legal system and the fairness of the English Courts.
Shareholder activism has become an increasingly important touchpoint in the UK’s corporate landscape and globally. As institutional investors, hedge funds and retail investors seek to exert increasing influence over public and private companies, activism has evolved into a mainstream corporate governance tool.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the UK government imposed broader and stricter financial and trade sanctions against Russian nationals and businesses “for the purposes of encouraging Russia to cease actions which destabilise Ukraine, or undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty or independence of Ukraine”.
The English court has recently sanctioned a scheme of arrangement in respect of a company incorporated in the Cayman Islands. The court had to consider whether the company concerned had a sufficient connection with this jurisdiction to enable the court to sanction the scheme and consider the impact of the Russian sanctions on certain classes of creditors.
