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2023: A pivotal moment for payments In this article we take stock of trends shaping the UK’s financial and payment systems, and the regulatory response to those trends. Introducing the current landscape The UK payments landscape in 2023 represents the confluence of three broad trend... Competition & Regulatory Newsletter: CMA clears Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard On 13 October 2023, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced that it had cleared Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard under a new deal in which Microsoft would not acquire Activision’s cloud streaming rights outside t... Tax and the City Review for October 2023 In their latest Tax and the City article, Mike Lane and Zoe Andrews consider the draft legislation to enact the EU-derived exemption from 1.5% stamp taxes on the issuance and transfer of securities to a clearance service or depositary receipt issuer; and ... CMA publishes its sustainability guidance On 12 October 2023, the CMA published its final guidance on the application of competition rules to environmental sustainability agreements (ESAs) between competitors. In line with the CMA’s increasing focus on environmental issues, this guidance pr... Employment Bulletin - October 2023 Topics covered in this bulletin: Supreme Court: gaps of more than three months did not break series of unlawful deductions of holiday pay New right to request a predictable work pattern Payment received by employee shortly after merger was taxable in... Lower bar for merger scrutiny? First below-threshold deal cleared with conditions in China In September, details emerged of a transaction in the Chinese pharmaceutical sector, whereby a below-threshold acquisition underwent an extensive review process involving the Chinese competition authority’s “stop-the-clock” powers. The review resulted in ... Cineworld: Restructuring goes to Hollywood Following its acquisition of the Regal cinema chain in the US in 2018, Cineworld, with its English-incorporated parent company, London premium listing and status as a household name in the UK cinema industry, became a truly transatlantic business.  ... British Tax Review - Finance (No.2) Act 2023 Notes: Section 10 and Schedule 1: relief for research and development Section 10 of and Schedule 1 to the Finance (No.2) Act 2023 make four key changes to the UK’s tax relief regimes for research and development, the research and development expenditure credit which generally applies to “large” companies a... British Tax Review - Finance Act 2023: Section 4: amount of relief for expenditure on research and development Section 4 of the Finance Act 2023 makes various changes to the rates of relief in respect of the UK’s tax relief regimes for research and development, the research and development expenditure credit which generally applies to “large” com... The EU Green Bond Standard: a welcome leap forward for sustainable finance? Following a lengthy period of negotiation between the co-legislators, the long-awaited EU green bond standard (the “EU GBS”) has been approved by the European Parliament and is set to be published shortly. First put forward as part of the European green d...