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Bumkyu Sung and Ik Hwan Cho of Kim & Chang explain the impact and future of South Korea’s law separating banks and securities firms

Jeffrey Oakes and Connie Milonakis of Davis Polk & Wardwell outline the key features and disclosure considerations for European banks issuing into the US

Philippos Aristotelous In accordance with its commitment to its international lenders, Cyprus has made a number of changes to tax rates. With effect from January 1 2013 the corporate income tax rate has been increased from 10% to 12.5%. The rate of special defence contribution (SDC) on interest has also been increased, from 15% to 30%. The increase will take effect from the date of publication of the law in the official gazette, probably during May 2013. SDC tax is payable only by tax residents of Cyprus; non-resident individuals and companies are completely exempt, and interest on corporate financing or loan arrangements is subject to income tax rather than SDC tax.

Clive Cunningham, Pat Horton and Nish Dissanayake of Herbert Smith Freehills explore the impact of the AIFM Directive on marketing alternative investment funds

Michael M Wiseman and Elizabeth T Davy of Sullivan & Cromwell explore the increasingly hostile US enforcement climate for financial institutions

Sandro Núñez Stock options are a kind of option right granted to employees. They allow those employees, within a specified term, to acquire equity in the employing company at a price agreed on the date of the call option. Stock options are created with the purpose of securing an employee's long-term commitment to the company, either as a part of a compensation plan, as a standalone agreement with a key employee, or as part of an M&A transaction where the selling parties intend to stay as part of the company's management.

Daniel Futej Cyril Hric For the past several weeks, the European banking sector has been facing a relatively specific situation where the owners of accounts in certain banks in Cyprus had to forfeit their deposits in a manner usually seen when a bank goes bankrupt. On the other hand, one of the effective tools used by EU member states in combating tax fraud and evasion is a restriction on cash payments. This means that parties are forced to settle their monetary obligations by means of bank transfer. Slovakia also adopted a law late last year expressly prohibiting cash payments exceeding a specified amount – Act No 394/2012 on restrictions on cash payments, which came into force on January 1 2013. The Act considers cash payments to be the handing over of notes or coins, in cash, in the euro or other currency, and the acceptance of that cash by the recipient. The limit on cash payments made between natural persons who are not entrepreneurs is €15,000 ($19,600). If the parties are legal persons or natural person entrepreneurs, however, the limit on cash payments between such parties is €5,000. If a cash payment is split into several instalments, where all the instalments are associated with one and the same legal arrangement, the instalments will be taken as a whole for the determination of the value of the cash payment.

Mian Muhammad Nazir The judgment of the Dubai Court of First Instance, in a case involving an ijara contract (lease contract), contemplates the UAE courts' level of familiarity with complex Islamic finance contract instruments. Though the court decision may be subject to appeal, but as it stands, it reveals an evidence of adequate judicial recognition for Islamic finance contracts. Although it is not the first case that recognises the application of principles of Shariah and Islamic contracts and instruments, the decision will nevertheless confirm the UAE legal and judicial systems' readiness to dispense justice and adjudicate civil and commercial disputes strictly in accordance with the terms and conditions of the underlying contracts and the governing law of such contracts.

Indonesia's Investment Coordination Board (BKPM) recently issued a new Regulation (Reg 5 2013) concerning Guidelines and Procedures for Licenses and Non-Licenses for Capital Investment, dated April 8 2013. The regulation presents new items that may impact new investment for establishing a foreign investment company as well as existing foreign investment companies (known as PMA companies:basically Indonesian incorporated companies that have one or more foreign direct shareholders).

Mark-Oliver Baumgarten, Thiemo Sturny, Andreas Bättig and Stefan Knobloch of Staiger Schwald & Partner examine the reasons why Switzerland has remained a financial hub while economic instability has claimed so many of its neighbours