The Year Ahead
Action Items for 2022

year

What Do You Need to Do in 2022?

From the acceleration of tech innovation across industries to the evolution of the business landscape under President Biden to the ongoing global pandemic, 2022 promises to be filled with changes, challenges and new opportunities for companies ready to think creatively about growth. As a Wall Street firm with elite global teams in finance, M&A, private equity, litigation and other key areas, we are here to share our perspectives and help guide our clients through the year ahead.

Select below industries

Antitrust & Competition

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Michael Spafford

Michael Spafford

Partner, Antitrust & Competition

Washington, D.C.

CONTACT Michael TO LEARN MORE

Michael Murray

Michael Murray

Partner, Antitrust & Competition

Washington, D.C.

CONTACT Michael TO LEARN MORE

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Gary Zanfagna

Gary Zanfagna

Chair, Antitrust & Competition

Washington, D.C.

Vigorous antitrust enforcement with a whole-of-government approach to competition policy is a top priority for President Biden, as shown by his Executive Order on “Promoting Competition in the American Economy” and selection of progressive, pro-enforcement leaders to head the DOJ Antitrust Division and the FTC. So what does this mean for companies in 2022?

First, President Biden has identified several industries for careful antitrust scrutiny, including technology, life sciences and financial services. Accordingly, strategic planning; customer, competitor and supplier relations; and prospective transactions should be viewed with an eye toward antitrust scrutiny. What is the potential impact on competition and market concentration?

Second, even if companies are not in one of the targeted industries, that does not signal a free pass. The administration is concerned about anticompetitive conduct and concentration in any market. Companies need to understand their position in the industries in which they compete as they plan for 2022.

Nevertheless, companies need to pursue their strategic objectives—and the antitrust laws do not stand in the way. Indeed, antitrust laws are intended to promote free and fair competition by big and small competitors alike. Antitrust counsel can provide valuable strategic advice to help companies navigate this new enforcement environment and achieve their business objectives.

CONTACT Gary TO LEARN MORE

Data Privacy & Cybersecurity

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Behn Dayanim

Behn Dayanim

Chair, Data Privacy and Cybersecurity

Washington, D.C.

2021 saw the passage of two significant state privacy laws in Colorado and Virginia, following on the heels of California’s landmark Consumer Privacy Act and Privacy Rights Act. We almost certainly will see other states join the fray, with tough new privacy laws that follow a similar model. Likely candidates include New York, Pennsylvania, Washington and others. At the same time, federal and state regulatory enforcement will continue to increase, with a particular focus on privacy and data use issues by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Both the FTC and CFPB have signaled concern over Big Tech’s use of consumer information, with the CFPB already launching an inquiry encompassing several large fintechs. Congress likely will consider privacy legislation as well. Both the FTC and many observers have urged Congress to enact new statutory authority for the Commission to pursue privacy violations, but any such effort would need to surmount continuing differences surrounding the extent of that authority, federal preemption, private rights of action for violations and other issues. All of those together continue to make congressional action a difficult prospect.

CONTACT Behn TO LEARN MORE

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Sarah Pearce

Sarah Pearce

Partner, Data Privacy and Cybersecurity

London

International data transfers will continue to be a priority in the coming year, with organizations under increasing pressure to ensure they have implemented new SCCs where needed ahead of the deadline. The additional layer—and headache—for many will be the new UK version expected early 2022. The continued free-flow of data across borders is critical for international business and the challenge for organizations to ensure compliance and safeguard such data flows has never been greater.

The wave of new and enhanced legislation globally in respect of personal data shows no sign of subsiding, with more U.S. states expected to implement their own legislation, and other key jurisdictions indicating additional, more stringent legislation is on the way. We can expect greater data localization and debates around data sovereignty intensifying as a result.

Cybersecurity will continue to be of serious concern in 2022. With ransomware and other malware attacks mounting in severity and sophistication, data security will establish itself firmly as a senior management issue.

CONTACT Sarah TO LEARN MORE

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Aaron Charfoos

Aaron Charfoos

Co-Chair, Data Privacy and Cybersecurity

Chicago

2021 saw a huge upswing in interest by the SEC around appropriate internal reporting and controls related to cybersecurity breaches and vulnerabilities. For example, the SEC settled charges against First American Financial Corp in June. The SEC alleged that a security researcher identified a significant vulnerability to the company, but senior executives were not informed of the severity of the threat and failed to properly incorporate the information into their filings. Similarly, the SEC sent a letter to tens of thousands of companies agreeing to provide limited amnesty to those companies that would provide disclosures on any previously unreported Solar Winds breaches. Taken together, along with other guidance and enforcement actions in 2021, the SEC is very focused on ensuring that companies have the proper internal reporting mechanisms to allow senior leadership to determine the privacy and cybersecurity risks the company faces and make disclosures where necessary.

In 2022, we expect to see continued interest by the SEC. In particular, we expect increased potential liability for executives and boards who the SEC sees as failing to put in place systems to identify the necessary information that will allow them to provide the proper oversight of their organizations.

CONTACT Aaron TO LEARN MORE

Employment Law

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Elena Baca

Elena Baca

Chair, Employment Law

Los Angeles

CONTACT Elena TO LEARN MORE

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Leslie Abbott

Leslie Abbott

Partner, Employment Law

Los Angeles

Since 2004 when the California Legislature passed the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), filings have increased more than 1,000% through January 2021. This number is expected to continue to increase significantly as long as the financial incentive for initiating PAGA suits remains. On behalf of our clients, we remain cutting-edge in our approach to defending PAGA actions, including winning motions challenging vague and overbroad PAGA complaints, motions to sequence or bifurcate PAGA discovery, motions to stay PAGA claims in conjunction with motions to compel individual wage claim arbitration, and motions for summary judgment. In the coming year we hope to see some positive news on the PAGA front as there should be an employer-driven initiative on California’s 2022 ballot, and the U.S. Supreme Court recently accepted review of a case involving Federal Arbitration Act preemption of PAGA claims. In the meantime, continuing to monitor PAGA case developments and settlement trends remains critical.

CONTACT Leslie TO LEARN MORE

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Ryan Derry

Ryan Derry

Partner, Employment Law

San Francisco

In 2022, collective employment actions will continue to rise. While private litigants will continue to press for ways to assert mass claims, employers should expect to see more activity by government agencies. Government agencies, including agencies not typically considered to have employment focus, are using their broad investigatory and subpoena powers, launching sweeping inquiries and litigating. They have extensive resources and significant media influence, which can result in longer, more expensive proceedings with impact on employee morale and public perception. Employers need to remain mindful of such agency efforts and prepare for extended and unfamiliar legal proceedings.

CONTACT Ryan TO LEARN MORE

Energy

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Luis Gomar

Luis Gomar

Partner, Corporate

Houston

The oil and gas industry has faced a whirlwind in the last 24 months. COVID, commodity price pressures (with negative crude prices for a bit), supply pressures, new regulations and a warp-speed movement (at least in the U.S., recognizing Europe has been at it for a while) toward sustainability and net zero goals. Traditional energy companies are hearing shareholders, investors and capital providers asking them to do more on sustainability. This translates into pressure to create sustainability within traditional value chains—such as green feedstock, carbon capture and sequestration, and hydrogen solutions—as well as new investment opportunities. Joint ventures in sustainable technologies and enterprises look and feel quite different from their “traditional” investment models. One important action item is to acknowledge this changing landscape and plan accordingly. Prepare by identifying “must haves” for your business and formulate agreements steaming from them. Secondly, form internal consensus around ESG metrics and reporting. Large, publicly traded companies may have a clear sense of how to tackle ESG generally, but moving forward ESG reporting will be relevant for companies of all sizes, public and private, to the extent that they are seeking capital. Plan for it.

CONTACT Luis TO LEARN MORE

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Steven Bryan

Steven Bryan

Partner, Corporate

London

The greatest challenge facing the global energy sector is limiting global warming to 1.5-2 degrees above pre-industrial levels by 2030 and achieving net zero by 2050. How will governments facilitate the delivery and funding of the transition to clean energy, given increasing global demand and energy security concerns? While there’s been good progress with some renewable technologies, such as wind and solar, others—including hydrogen, carbon capture, battery storage and EV charging networks—are still at early stages of development, investment and deployment. A sharp acceleration is needed—and must be financed. Governments will need to lead in rolling out regulatory initiatives to fund directly and incentivize private sector investment into these sectors.

Banks, capital markets, investment funds, and corporate sponsors are reallocating significant capital into assets that meet ESG criteria. At the same time, regulatory changes are being implemented to combat “greenwashing” by market participants, including the creation of the International Sustainability Standards Board and new transparency requirements in the EU and UK for fund managers’ ESG investment policies and asset allocation.

Proven returns on renewables as an asset class, combined with reallocation of investment portfolios in line with new ESG regulations and frameworks, suggest that there is no shortage of private capital available. The most significant challenges remain increasing the pipeline of large-scale investment opportunities, domestic government funding and policies to incentivize deployment of private capital, together with achieving geopolitical consensus on how to meet global energy transition objectives and who will bear the costs.

CONTACT Steven TO LEARN MORE

Entertainment & Media

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Susan Williams

Susan Williams

Partner, Entertainment & Media

Century City

The entertainment and media industry has seen major structural transformation over the last 18 months, which has accelerated trends that were already evolving. Our clients should be focusing on those trends and where they will lead as this transformation continues. Our producer and talent clients are more relevant than ever given the explosion of new content that is needed to feed the new platforms shaping the industry. There are new players and new structures that have made a significant impact on financial opportunities, which have brought a wealth of capital into the business to fuel the need for new content. We have many clients both deploying and procuring capital who are, and should be, taking advantage of these opportunities.

CONTACT Susan TO LEARN MORE

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Tamerlin Godley

Tamerlin Godley

Partner, Complex Litigation

Los Angeles

Looking ahead to 2022, I expect to see the following developments for my clients in the entertainment and media industry. First, there will be continued exploration of NFTs and exploitation of the blockchain ecosystem. It is important for clients to manage this carefully to protect their content, navigate securities and related regulations, and be aware of their agreements with third parties when working in this sphere. Second, I expect to see a further focus on workplace issues, including return to work issues. It will be important for clients to get ahead of these issues with robust HR practices and very responsive follow-up to voiced employee concerns. Thoughtful investigations and well-communicated remedial measures, where warranted, will be important. Third, I anticipate additional defamation litigation in the news space.

CONTACT Tamerlin TO LEARN MORE

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Sean Monroe

Sean Monroe

Partner, M&A

Century City

Our entertainment and media clients are encouraged to remain aggressive in evaluating investment opportunities, while retaining flexibility in order to respond to the continuing challenges of the COVID pandemic within the industry and their own businesses. Building and executing on business plans and deals takes time and attention—from the diligence phase through negotiation to consummation. Clients must proactively stay on task to execute efficiently and with precision on priorities, or to pivot, sooner than later, within the new fiscal year. We anticipate that investors, studios and operators will continue to explore new digital delivery systems and marketplaces for the exploitation of content. In addition, NFT and other crypto-related technologies will continue to develop and gain market acceptance and audiences, enabling new models for investments in and the consumption of content.

CONTACT Sean TO LEARN MORE

Environmental, Social & Governance

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Tara Giunta

Tara Giunta

Vice-Chair, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Washington, D.C.

CONTACT Tara TO LEARN MORE

Jonathan Drimmer

Jonathan Drimmer

Partner, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Washington, D.C.

CONTACT Jonathan TO LEARN MORE

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Nicola Bonucci

Nicola Bonucci

Partner, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Paris

2022 will be a crucial year for ESG in at least two respects. First, the EU should complete its work on corporate due diligence and corporate accountability initiated in 2020. Should a EU directive be adopted, it would likely extend not only to defined categories of EU businesses but also to equivalent categories of non-EU businesses operating in the European single market by the supply of goods or services. Second, in terms of reporting standard, the International Sustainability Standard Board (ISSB) established in the margins of COSP 26 in Glasgow will build on the work of existing investor-focused reporting initiatives to become the global standard-setter for sustainability disclosures for the financial markets. The challenge in this respect will be to reconcile ISSB work with similar work undertaken within the EU, expected to proceed also in 2022.

CONTACT Nicola TO LEARN MORE

Intellectual Property

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Young Park

Young Park

Partner, Intellectual Property

New York

2021 ended with the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issuing two opinions addressing the written description requirement, Indivior v. Dr. Reddy’s and Biogen v. Mylan. These opinions reflect a trend toward heightened attention to the standard for demonstrating “possession” of the claimed invention under 35 U.S.C. § 112’s written description requirement. They may also provide fodder for patent challengers, including generic manufacturers in Hatch-Waxman litigations, to test the limits of the written description requirement in their cases. Moreover, it would not be surprising to see more attacks based on alleged lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. § 112 or disputes relating to a claim for an earlier priority date based on disclosure in an earlier-filed patent application. With our expertise in patent law, however, we can help our clients navigate potentially complicated issues arising from this evolving case law.

CONTACT Young TO LEARN MORE

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Matthias Kamber

Matthias Kamber

Partner, Intellectual Property

San Francisco

Heading into 2022, two action items stand out. First, courts will have to address the trial backlog that COVID has created. Many cases have been filed during the pandemic but very few have gone to trial. Whether and to what degree courts use the tools at their disposal—motions to dismiss, transfers, summary judgment, ADR pressure, and actual trials—to chip away at the backlog or at least keep it from getting worse will be interesting to observe. Second, the lack of trials has created a relative dearth of recent decisions on damages issues. Eye-popping damages theories are likely to face scrutiny on Daubert motions and the Federal Circuit will likely be looking for more opportunities to expound on the issue.

CONTACT Matthias TO LEARN MORE

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Hiroyuki Hagiwara

Hiroyuki Hagiwara

Partner, Intellectual Property

Tokyo

The patentability standard has evolved significantly over the last several years, due to a large number of case laws following the quartet of critical U.S. Supreme Court decisions decided under Section 101. Because many patent applications which are currently pending or being prosecuted before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office may have been filed several years ago, it would be a good investment of time to review, draft, update and amend patent claims now, considering the evolving patent eligibility standard under Alice, in particular, for technology companies, and under Mayo and Myriad for biotechnology innovators.

For technology companies, it’s important to include distinguishing elements which are novel and unique to get the invention over the Alice step-II hurdle. For biotechnology innovators, there is an issue of naturally occurring phenomena under Mayo and Myriad. In addition, intertwined with that issue, the courts are on the lookout for patent applicants capturing subject matter too broadly by functionally specifying claimed subject matters. It’s worth the effort to draft claims creatively, resorting to different styles of claiming and differing degrees of breadth of claims, and embracing future scrutiny in the ever-changing Section 101 landscape.

CONTACT Hiroyuki TO LEARN MORE

Investigations & White Collar Defense

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Kwame Manley

Kwame Manley

Chair, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Washington, D.C.

CONTACT Kwame TO LEARN MORE

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Allyson Baker

Allyson Baker

Partner, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Washington, D.C.

CONTACT Allyson TO LEARN MORE

Meredith Boylan

Meredith Boylan

Partner, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Washington, D.C.

CONTACT Meredith TO LEARN MORE

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Jonathan Pickworth

Jonathan Pickworth

Partner, Investigations & White Collar Defense

London

The pandemic restrictions seem to have caused a slowdown in many areas of enforcement in 2020 and 2021. As we emerge from these restrictions, expect law enforcement to pick up again, particularly in relation to overseas and domestic corruption, accounting fraud and money laundering. As usual, we expect the U.S. to lead the way. In the UK, the potential extension of the law around corporate criminal liability adds to the corporate risk profile. And with the implementation across 27 EU Member States of the Whistleblower Directive, with its application to third-party workers (including contractors, suppliers and shareholders) as well as the in-built presumption of retaliation against whistleblowers who claim to suffer adverse effects from making a report, we should expect to see an increase in whistleblowing reports and consequential investigations.

CONTACT Jonathan TO LEARN MORE

Life Sciences

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Bruce Wexler

Bruce Wexler

Co-Chair, Intellectual Property

New York

AI will further push biotechs to new heights. Like many other industries exploring an AI revolution, we are already seeing new ways of innovating and will see in the near future previously unimaginable rates of innovation in biotechnology drug research and development thanks to AI. This includes early stages of development as well as bringing drugs to market through clinical trials. Although these changes were already proceeding along an exponential rate of growth, we saw the need to respond to COVID-19 vigorously push that rate up the growth curve even more. With these changes and innovations, we will continue to see companies paying careful attention to their IP protecting their business and technology, and staying attentive to ensure their freedom to operate and to defend their actions against any threats.

CONTACT Bruce TO LEARN MORE

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Phoebe Yan

Phoebe Yan

Partner, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Shanghai

In 2022, life science companies will remain the focus of Chinese and overseas regulators from the perspective of anti-bribery, anti-corruption, anti-trust and other traditional compliance and internal control enforcement. Therefore, it may be prudent for life science companies to continue paying special attention to regulatory issues, including off-label promotion, use of patient assistance programs and supplementary medical insurance mechanisms, as well as compliance with unique Chinese regulatory policies, such as volume purchase and the two-invoice system. In addition, life science companies would also want to review their data security and data privacy internal control systems to be compliant with the Data Security Law and Personal Information Protection Law recently passed in China.

CONTACT Phoebe TO LEARN MORE

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Joy Dowdle

Joy Dowdle

Partner, Investigations & White Collar Defense

Houston

The pandemic served to fuel a number of key trends across the industry. The explosion of the virtual universe served to fuel the already-up-and-coming world of digital healthcare. Similarly, going virtual continued the paradigm shift from an industry focus on HCPs to a focus on patients—from direct-to-consumer messaging, social media, and influencers to direct interactions with patients and their caregivers. In the wake of these trends, which regulators are closely scrutinizing, companies should take the opportunity to examine how their risk profiles have been impacted by the pandemic, and by these trends in particular, to ensure evolution of their going-forward monitoring activities in view of current strategies and ways of working. Accordingly, there are a number of critical questions companies should consider in 2022, including: Are we focused on the activities and strategies that are driving our post-pandemic risk? Where and how are we virtual? What are our guardrails on patient messaging, engagement and interactions—and are those consistent, where appropriate, with our rules of the road on HCP interactions and engagements?

CONTACT Joy TO LEARN MORE

Mergers and Acquisitions

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Thad Malik

Thad Malik

Chair, M&A

Chicago

In 2022 we expect more of the same, but with a few twists. Supply chain disruptions won’t resolve overnight, and the effects of the pandemic, both lingering and arising as a result of variants, will remain. But the deal community is adaptable—risks will be factored into pricing and structuring, and deals will still get done. Though valuations are starting to give some pause, expect competition for quality assets in particular to remain robust. With respect to execution, motivated buyers will move quickly, with a particular advantage going to bidders who present no regulatory challenges (whether relating to antitrust, foreign investment or otherwise). Digitalization trends will continue, though perhaps shifting a bit from the transformational into the evolutionary—and we expect strategics to return to the fray, with rationalization of non-core businesses most likely resulting in an increase in carve-outs.

CONTACT Thad TO LEARN MORE

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Roger Barron

Roger Barron

Vice-Chair, M&A

London

With the world experiencing a constant amount of uncertainty throughout 2021, some were surprised at the strength and robustness of M&A deal activity. However, it was signposted and underpinned by key fundamentals such as availability of capital and continued low interest rates. There are no signs of this abating in 2022. In fact, a combination of economic growth in some sectors, coupled with an increased number of distressed businesses due to the pandemic, means more targets on the stocks for that capital to be deployed. Over in Europe, we are also starting to see SPACs as feasible buyers, catching up on the U.S. trend over the past 12 months. Highly competitive auction deals will continue to be the norm, including an ongoing trend in public M&A. All this therefore points to a need for deal preparation, focused due diligence and execution excellence.

CONTACT Roger TO LEARN MORE

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Jia Yan

Jia Yan

Partner, Corporate

Beijing and Shanghai

In 2021, low interest rates and a long bull run in the equity markets propelled merger and acquisition activity to record highs. Early in the pandemic, market volatility forced businesses into survival mode and bankruptcies soared in 2020. With the recovery firmly underway, and the global economic outlook relatively optimistic, the market is now faced with excessive liquidity and towering public market valuations. Many businesses used this opportunity to raise capital or sell. Coupled with the resurgence of active, well-funded SPACs, these factors combined to accelerate global M&A activities.

We expect many of these market conditions to persist in 2022, suggesting another year of robust M&A activities. Volatility is likely to continue to decline in tandem with pandemic recovery, while tapering remains likely on the horizon.

CONTACT Jia TO LEARN MORE

Private Equity

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Amit Mehta

Amit Mehta

Chair, Corporate

Chicago

Over the last two years we have seen an incredible run in the number and size of private equity transactions, including sponsors establishing SPAC vehicles as an additional tool in their financial tool chest. This has continued to drive high valuations coupled with tight timelines in order to close transactions on an expedited basis for fear of losing to another bidder. The number of SPAC vehicles that have launched, with more continuing to come to market, will also continue to drive competition for deals, especially when taking into account the limited investment horizon on some of the older SPACs. Finally, this unprecedented volume has also created an issue with respect to the availability of service providers, investment banks, lenders and insurers to provide the necessary pieces for sponsors to consummate transactions.

We continue to advise our sponsor clients that moving quickly is paramount to winning deals and, in some cases, a close second to valuation itself. Terms continue to be very seller favorable and, depending on tax rates and debt financing availability, we don’t see the tide shifting anytime soon. Our clients have also been able to get comfortable with the pandemic risks they see in the market. However, with new variants coming into play, the question may again arise as to what the economic outlook for the global economy is going to be, and if and when the music will stop. So the question is will the market continue to be as hot in 2022? Only time will tell, but certainly at the pace 2021 is ending, we suspect the private equity market will continue to move at a furious speed with clients deploying capital at a rapid pace.

CONTACT Amit TO LEARN MORE

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Arthur de Baudry d’Asson

Arthur de Baudry d’Asson

Partner, Private Equity

Paris

The private equity sector was extremely active in 2021, with over $1T in deals, and COVID-19 has not stopped the bull run the market is experiencing. Valuations have never been so high, and everyone is asking themselves if the party will ever end. It is difficult to predict, as private equity continues to outperform many asset classes, and 2021 has been a record-breaking year for private equity fundraising. The pace at which the most fast-growing funds, such as Thoma Bravo, EQT and Insight Partners, are raising new funds is astounding. We are seeing clients expand in new asset classes, such as impact-oriented, growth or longer-hold funds aimed at accompanying and transforming companies over longer timeframes. Competition for high quality assets has never been so strong, and I am not sure that the threats related to soaring energy prices, supply chain shortages, and inflation will deter private equity funds from continuing to compete fiercely for the best assets in 2022, as sitting on their cash is not an option.

CONTACT Arthur TO LEARN MORE

Securities & Capital Markets

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Brandon Bortner

Brandon Bortner

Partner, Securities & Capital Markets

Washington, D.C.

As we head into 2022, there are approximately 570 pre-deal, post-IPO, SPACs with over $155 billion in trust. Where 2020 and 2021 were the years of the SPAC IPO, I expect the balance of SPAC activity during 2022 to shift toward business combinations. Given the relatively tight PIPE market, I expect sponsors to remain nimble in terms of supplemental financing for merger consideration and for sponsors and SPAC targets alike to place increasing emphasis on transaction certainty. Given SPAC targets often weigh the merits of a traditional IPO alongside the de-SPAC process, I anticipate PIPE and redemption backstops to become nearly universal features of successful business combinations during the first half of 2022 as potential SPAC targets seek to maximize value and minimize execution risk.

CONTACT Brandon TO LEARN MORE

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Jonathan Ko

Jonathan Ko

Partner, Securities & Capital Markets

Los Angeles

As the cliché goes, timing is everything. Whether issuers are compelled or are looking to be opportunistic with respect to accessing the capital markets, the preparedness of issuers for an offering will be important. Given that macroeconomic conditions will continue to impact the timing for securities offerings, issuers need to assess their ability to respond quickly to available market windows or whether there are lead time items that could potentially delay an offering, such as refreshing a shelf for non-“well-known seasoned issuers.” Similarly, issuers should assess the adequacy of their disclosures in anticipation of a potential offering, whether previewing trends or updating for developments in the business, particularly for public companies.

CONTACT Jonathan TO LEARN MORE

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Thiago Spercel

Thiago Spercel

Partner, Securities & Capital Markets

São Paulo

While Brazilian equity and debt capital markets experienced record levels of activity in 2021, we expect a decrease in 2022, due to uncertainties from elections, interest rate increases and inflation, and possible new COVID-19 variants. The equity capital markets will likely become more selective, with fewer, but seasoned, issuers accessing the market with larger offerings. In continuation of the recent trend, Brazilian companies will likely access the international capital markets by listing their shares directly at U.S. stock exchanges, such as the recent multi-billion-dollar IPOs of Nubank at the New York Stock Exchange and of XP, Patria and Vinci at the Nasdaq.

In the debt arena, Brazil has experienced significant growth in green and sustainability-linked bonds over the past two years—an attractive opportunity for Brazilian issuers to offer sustainable investment products in the international capital markets.

Finally, a significant number of Latin American-sponsored SPACs listed on U.S. exchanges in 2021. According to Deal Point, there is $180B of dry powder raised by SPACs for acquisitions in the next couple of years, a large portion addressed to Latin American targets. As such, in 2022 we expect that there will be a significant volume of business combinations involving SPACs and Latin American targets.

CONTACT Thiago TO LEARN MORE