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New York mutual life insurer Metropolitan Life Insurance has acquired Californian-based Security First Group from London Insurance Group. The deal is worth US$377 million.

The financing of projects in China is slowly but surely being made more attractive to international investors. Edward Lam of Shearman & Sterling, London, looks at the most recent measures

Recent changes in the rules of capital tax on shares traded on the Stockholm Stock Exchange created considerable turmoil. In particular, they affected foreign shareholders because companies have changed the listing of their shares to avoid tax increases.

The Singapore Mediation Centre was opened by the Singapore Academy of Law on August 16 1997 to provide a full range of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services, in particular private, non-court based mediation, as an alternative to litigation. At the launch, the Chief Justice said that "for businesses, litigation undermines their competitiveness by eating up management time and damaging business goodwill and reputation". Echoing the government's strong commitment to mediation, the Attorney-General's Chambers have recommended that future government contracts should carry a clause on the referral of disputes for mediation when appropriate.

The merger of J&A Garrigues and Andersen ALT has accelerated the process of change in Spain. Defensive reactions have already begun and nothing will be the same again. Nick Ferguson reports

The Allen Committee’s Final Report strikes a blow for greater transparency and accountability in corporate governance in Canada. By Thomas Allen and Andrew Fleming of Ogilvy Renault, Toronto and London

Since 1984, the Statute on the Acquisition of Real Estate by Foreigners in Switzerland, commonly known as the Lex Friedrich, limits the acquisition of real estate by persons domiciled in a foreign country and by foreigners living in Switzerland. The purpose of the statute, set forth in Article 1, is "to prevent foreign control of domestic land". Foreigners were only allowed to acquire land in Switzerland under the conditions set out in the Lex Friedrich.

Recently approved measures allow the separation of principal and coupons of certain issues of Spanish government debt, as well as their subsequent reunification. These measures provide greater liquidity for the government debt market, as well as increasing the supply of this type of securities, allowing each investor to better tailor his or her investment portfolio to his or her needs in terms of principal, maturity and yield. Both individuals and corporate bodies can own these separated securities.

No sign of money-laundering activity was found in Cyprus's banking system during the recent investigation by a team of international banking specialists from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Two new Acts of Parliament have introduced far-reaching reforms to the rules governing the privatization of state-owned companies in Poland. The first Act, of August 8 1996, abolished the Ministry of Privatizations, and, as of October 1 1996, transferred its functions to the Treasury Ministry. The second Act, of August 30 1996, amended the terms and conditions of the sale and privatization of state-owned companies. It came into force on April 8 1997.