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News round-up In November, Helsinki firm Heikki Haapaniemi failed to save itself from collapse as partners agreed to go their separate ways. The partnership's decision to disband came at the end of a series of defections that rocked the firm throughout 2000.

The US water infrastructure needs billions of dollars of investment. As concern mounts that many towns and cities may struggle in the not-too-distant future to provide citizens with clean, safe water, IFLR invited a panel of industry specialists to discuss the obstacles and opportunities created by what may be the US’s next great infrastructure challenge

Singapore's DBS hired Freshfields and Allen & Gledhill to advise on its S$10 billion ($5.5billion) acquisition of Hong Kong's Dao Heng, which was advised by Slaughter and May. DBS's $782 million hybrid tier one financing in March prompted speculation that an acquisition was likely. Negotiations are rumoured to have begun in October 2000. DBS is controlled by the Singapore government, while Dao Heng was owned by the Guoco Group, which is controlled by the Kwek family, one of Malaysia's shrewdest business families.

Wall Street firm Cravath, Swain & Moore had a bumper start to the Spring season in March, successful negotiating two deals totalling $15.5 billion. Also involved in the transactions were Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison and Californian firm Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe. Cravath, Swaine & Moore acted for healthcare product maker Johnson & Johnson in April on its agreed a $10.5 billion merger with research-based pharmaceuticals company ALZA. Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe acted for ALZA in a transaction which saw ALZA shareholders receive a fixed exchange ratio of 0.49 shares of Johnson & Johnson common stock for each share of ALZA in a tax-free transaction.

Kevin Muzilla US firms Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy and Weil, Gotshal & Manges have advised on the first refinancing this year of a leveraged buy-out (LBO). The firms acted for lead manager Deutsche Bank and United Biscuits respectively on the $326 million refinancing of last year's LBO of UK biscuit maker by the Finalream consortium, which included Cinven, Paribas Affaire Industrielles, DB Capital Partners and Nabisco The refinancing of the United Biscuits LBO was done through a high-yield bond issue of two of senior subordinated notes, one of £120 million ($173 million) at 10% and redeemable in 2011 and the other of euro 160 million ($143 million) also due in 2011.

Lucent Technologies, advised by Cravath, Swaine &Moore, finally pulled off a $3.6 billion initial public offering (IPO) of its optoelectronics division, Agere Systems, in late March, bringing a welcome boost to equity work for some lawyers in the US.

Although China has operated stock exchanges for a decade, it has never delisted a company. Now the Chinese regulator is tightening its rules to prevent unprofitable companies from continuing to have their shares traded. Liu Haili of Richards Butler, Hong Kong, explains

The Resolution of the Governor of the Bank of Italy dated November 28 2000 has introduced new provisions on the drafting of the fund rules of common investment funds, established in Italy pursuant to the European Communities Regulation 1989 (undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities – so-called harmonized funds).

The EU Committee of Wise Men chaired by Alexandre Lamfalussy has issued its final report on the regulation of European securities markets.

Gilles Thieffry of Andersen Legal, London, looks at the controversial Lamfalussy Report and argues that more needs to be done to promote a pan-European securities regulator if the authorities are to keep up with market realities