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Russia is pursuing a policy of strengthening market competition, including competition in the financial services market. It is expected that a new antitrust law regulating competition will be submitted to the Russian government soon. The existing system prevents market domination - it is proposed that instead any abuse of such domination and concerted action of competitors to restrict competition be suppressed.

Various mutual funds are leaving The Netherlands because of the mandatory listing at the Euronext stock exchange in Amsterdam. The funds complain that such listing is of no added value to them, because it entails a cost and administrative burden that is too heavy.

Increasing numbers of Indonesian obligors are trying to nullify their obligations under certain internationally practiced bonds issuance structures by claiming that the bonds and the underlying structure are invalid and thus unenforceable in Indonesia. Danareksa Jakarta International, Tri Polyta Indonesia, Indah Kiat Pulp & Paper (these are public companies) and Lontar Papyrus Pulp & Paper are among those obligors. The creditors, mostly international financial institutions, allege that these are merely the efforts of such obligors to avoid having to honour their obligations by taking advantage of the much-doubted Indonesian legal system.

The UK's Takeover Panel is considering codifying its rules on put or shut up orders and restricting the amount of information that acquirers can include in possible offer announcements.

Proposed changes to the Basel Capital Accord's securitization framework leave issues unresolved, says Mark Nicolaides

The Finnish Act on Financial Collateral Arrangements (the Act), which entered into force on February 1 2004, implements Directive 2002/47/EC on financial collateral arrangements.

The Hong Kong Stock Exchange has stunned the market with a new rule on pre-deal research to curb selective disclosure. Bankers now fear for the future of analyst reports. By Andrew Crooke

Jaap Winter, De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek, former chairman of the EU High Level Group of Company Law Experts

Japan has recently revised its disclosure rules so that any material fact (juyou jijitsu) related to the affairs of a listed company will now be considered public information once it is posted on the online disclosure system hosted by the relevant Japanese stock exchange.

Simon Davies, Linklaters and Agnes Nardi, 3HK Linklaters' lawyers spent 2003 chalking up many firsts in Asia. Equity deals that stood out included those in south-east Asia for Astro All Asia Networks, Bank Mandiri, Fortune REIT, SingPost, Krung Thai Bank and Bangkok Bank, and in China for PICC. The firm's equity-linked tally included innovative work in China with Beijing Datang, in Singapore with SingTech, in Malaysia with Genting, and in India with Tata Motors. Linklaters showed the strength of its debt practice with roles on the record-breaking Hutchison Whampoa and Singapore Power offerings, and the firm was influential in Ford Motor Credit's retail offering winning approval in Hong Kong. In M&A, Linklaters acted on the Japan Telecom-Ripplewood and SingTel-Yellow Pages leveraged buyouts, and the creation of the inaugural Sino-foreign joint venture fund management company for ABN AMRO. Project finance firsts included the Pusan New Port, Guangdong LNG and Mindanao power deals.