News, Deals & Cases

On 4 June 2014, Dufry AG (Dufry), a Swiss corporation listed on the SIX Stock Exchange, announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of The Nuance Group AG, a global travel retailer based in Zurich, for a consideration of CHF 1.55 billion. While the transactionrelated funding was fully secured through a committed…

Reference: CapLaw-2014-15 On 7 April 2014, SIX Swiss Exchange listed biopharmaceutical company Newron Pharmaceuticals S.p.A. headquartered in Bresso/Milan, Italy, announced that in connection with a private placement it has raised gross proceeds of CHF 18.6 million, following the subscription by current institutional shareholders and new institutional investors joining from Europe and the US. The private…

Reference: CapLaw-2014-16 On 24 March 2014, Thurgauer Kantonalbank announced its initial public offering of 2,175,000 participation certifi cates with a nominal value of CHF 20 each. The final offer price per participation certifi cate was CHF 74, valuing the listed share capital of Thurgauer Kantonalbank at approximately CHF 160 million. The first day of trading…

In December 2013, Nestlé SA sold its 926’562 shares, representing an approximate 10.03% stake, in the Swiss fragrance and fl avour maker Givaudan SA. Nestlé SA had acquired the shares in 2002 when it sold Givaudan SA its food ingredient company FIS for a combination of cash and stock worth CHF 750 million. The transaction…

In August and September 2013 Credit Suisse issued a total of approx. CHF 4 bn of write-down bonds that qualify towards the Progressive Component under the Swiss Too big to fail-Legislation, all governed by Swiss law and all listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. Credit Suisse’s inaugural issue consisted of USD 2.5 bn Tier 2…

On 5 September 2013, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA (FINMA) published the definitive version of its fully revised “Market Conduct Rules” Circular. The Circular sets out specific details of FINMA’s supervisory practices in combating market abuse and will enter into force on 1 October 2013. The new legislation underlying this Circular has been…

On 29 August 2013, the Department of Justice published its “Program for Non-Prosecution Agreements or Non-Target Letters for Swiss Banks”. This Program shall enable Swiss banks to address their past practices in dealing with US tax payers. The program was announced under a joint statement between the US Department of Justice and the Swiss Federal…

On 7 October 2013, Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd successfully closed its issuance of CHF 175 million 7.50% Subordinated Contingent Write-off Securities with a scheduled maturity in 2045 (the Notes). The Notes provide for a dual contingent writeoff mechanism which is triggered (i) in case the required minimum solvency margin falls below 135% and (ii) in…

On 15 May 2013, BMW Group successfully closed a cross-border securitization of a portfolio of lease assets originated in Switzerland. The CHF 220.5 million Class A Notes are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. The transaction involved the sale by BMW (Schweiz) AG of Swiss car and motorbike lease assets to a newly established Luxembourg…