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^{As we reported in December, the UK Government has recently published the National Security and Investment Bill ("the NSI Bill") – draft legislation designed to strengthen its powers to scrutinise transactions on grounds of national security.}

The NSI Bill will broaden the range of investments which can be reviewed by the UK government, and introduce a statutory requirement for parties to notify transactions in the most sensitive areas of the economy. Alongside a mandatory notification requirement, the government will also have a more extensive "call-in" power to enable it to assess deals which may give rise to national security risks.  

In the years leading up to Brexit, both the UK and the EU had been busy developing sustainability policy and legislation. Now the UK has left the EU, it remains committed to being at the forefront of the sustainable finance agenda.

Tax partner Elena Rowlands, Head of Real Estate Tax Cathryn Vanderspar and Knowledge Counsel Ian Zeider have written the lead article in a recent edition of Tax Journal in which they set out their views on the government's proposals for a new tax privileged asset holding company regime. You can read the full article below.

Finance Partners Danny Peel and Katie McMenamin and Senior Counsel Jamie Parish have written a chapter for Global Legal Insights on the fund finance market and liquidity solutions available to alternative asset fund managers.

Finance Partners Peter Hughes and Joseph Wren and Senior Associate Vanessa Kalijnikoff Battaglia have written a chapter for Global Legal Insights on some of the key structural and documentary legal issues that should be considered by private capital managers.

Writing for Private Funds CFO, Funds Senior Associate Ed Ford and Senior Counsel Sacha Gofton-Salmond outline the pros and cons of preferred equity transactions.

Writing for Practical Law, Finance Partner Peter Hughes, Pensions Partner David James and Pensions Consultant Charlotte Feld consider negotiations between employers and DB pension scheme trustees against a backdrop of COVID-19.

Derivatives & Structured Products Partner, Jonathan Gilmour, and Pensions Partner, Andy Lewis, have jointly contributed to the recently published International Comparative Legal Guide on Environmental, Social & Governance Law 2021, with a chapter on the economic rationale behind ESG investment and the key challenges and opportunities which flow from ESG-related pensions law and regulation

We have partnered with the CBI and UCL to launch this year's London Business Survey, which canvasses views of nearly 200 of the capital's business leaders on topics including Brexit, Covid-19, sustainability, diversity and equality.  

Mahesh Varia has contributed the United Kingdom Chapter to the ninth edition of The Executive Remuneration Review.

Commercial, IP & Technology partners Richard Brown and Louisa Chambers, along with senior associate Rowan Armstrong and employment partner Adam Wyman have written the UK chapter of the Chambers Global Practice Guide to Outsourcing 2020.

Writing for Practical Law, Senior Counsel John Buttanshaw and Partner and Head of Risk & Operational Regulatory Doug Bryden, take a look at how environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues may arise and be addressed in transactions, with a particular focus on private equity mergers and acquisitions. 

Contributing to the Imprima newsletter, Strategic Operations Director Stacey Rickford, comments on trends in the use of artificial intelligence in legal due diligence processes and the future of the legal profession. 

Writing for Pensions Aspects, Partner and Head of Pensions Sector Daniel Gerring, DSP Partner Sebastian Reger and Pensions Consultant Charlotte Feld take a look at the complicated rules of the 'endgame' for the funding of DB pension schemes, and at how trustees can play to win.

In this article Natalie Scoones, George Weavil and Jessica Kemp discuss why a debt for equity swap is likely to play a role in many restructurings that result from the downturn triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. They explain how such transactions are structured, the likely motivations of key stakeholders and the tax and regulatory implications of such transactions.

New legislation in Finance Act 2020 legislates retrospectively for HMRC to use artificial intelligence to carry out its functions. The article below was written for Tax Journal's September issue by Hannah Manning, Sophie Lloyd and Laura Jackson, and considers in particular some areas of potential concern in relation to HMRC's increasing use of automation, such as the raising of discovery assessments, business risk reviews and the assessment of discretionary penalties.

Finance Partner Katie McMenamin and Funds Senior Associate Ed Ford discuss the bespoke nature of liquidity options available to private equity managers in their Expert Commentary for Private Equity International.  

The global COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented situation that will have a long-term impact on the private fund management industry, stretching beyond the current period of lockdown and altering the way in which private funds are raised and operated. In this article, Travers Smith Funds Partner Sam Kay discusses private fund management issues arising from COVID-19.

In their contribution to the International Comparative Legal Guides, Travers Smith Funds Partner Jeremy Elmore and Head of Tax Emily Clark discuss alternative investment funds in England & Wales.