If there is anything that Canadian dealmakers are all too familiar with in 2019, it’s the concept of uncertainty. Raging trade wars, geopolitical tensions, elections, and a forecasted economic downturn are all pervasive in everyday conversation. Despite this, deal flow
2019
Dealing with pending or threatened litigation in M&A
A significant consideration when considering an M&A target can be the impact that pending or threatened litigation has on the proposed transaction.
While some organizations may balk at the idea of acquiring a target that is (or is likely to…
Parties to M&A must be diligent about climate change
Climate change has become a high profile issue that is expected to have significant implications for M&A transactions going forward. As public awareness and scientific understanding of climate change continues to evolve, we are more informed about the climate change-related…
Location, location, location: Where’s your chief executive office?
In the context of cross-border secured financing transactions involving Canada and the United States, the rules relating to perfection and priority of personal property pledged in favour of a lender or agent are similar. In the U.S., Article 9 of…
Cybersecurity in M&A Transactions: Friend or Foe?
The heavy reliance on technology in today’s data-driven world means that cybersecurity threats must be taken seriously. More specifically, with respect to M&A transactions, a target’s cybersecurity mechanisms have become an important part of the due diligence consideration. Indeed, it…
Canadian M&A Q3 2019 Review: Canadian M&A activity remains strong despite a slight decline in transaction volume
Crosbie & Company’s “Crosbie & Company Canadian Mergers & Acquisitions Report for Q3 2019” (the Report) reviews the minor slowdown in Canadian M&A activity in Q3 2019 following a record-breaking second quarter. While deal activity declined slightly in Q3…
CANADA’S COMPETITION BUREAU IS KEEPING AN EYE ON SMALL M&A DEALS
The Competition Bureau (the “Bureau”) is required to review certain merger transactions that exceed various financial thresholds, based on the size of the business being acquired and the combined size of the buyer, the target business, and their affiliates. The…
Chamber of Digital Commerce Releasing the First Ever Comprehensive Report on Canada’s Blockchain Ecosystem
Over the last decade in which the digital economy has grown at an unprecedented pace across industry sectors, blockchain technology and distributed ledger technology have shown the ability to reform the ways in which businesses and governments operate. To better…
Emerging Trends in Information Technology (IT) Mergers and Acquisitions
Canada’s burgeoning information technology (IT) sector is a standout in the Canadian mergers and acquisitions landscape. A recent report by Duff & Phelps illustrates that in the first half of 2019, IT was the third most active deal-making sector in…
New guidance on material climate change disclosure for reporting issuers
On August 1, 2019, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) released CSA Staff Notice 51-358 in efforts to clarify the scope of disclosure for reporting issuers, specifically for smaller issuers. Securities law in Canada requires reporting issuers to disclose…