Centennial Coal Company Limited v Xstrata Coal Pty Ltd is the latest case in Australia to consider whether there is any substantive difference in the meaning and practical application of the terms 'reasonable endeavours' and 'best endeavours' in a commercial contract. Read more.

Suppliers who export goods to businesses in Australia will be directly affected by the Personal Property Securities Act 2009. From May 2011, conditional sale agreements that meet the PPSA's 'in substance' definition of security interest will be treated as security interests. Read more.

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In response to "negative experience" with its leaflet (Merkblatt) pertaining to control of members of supervisory boards at institutions published on 22 February 2010, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has recently held a conference and discussed amendments relating to this. Read more.

On 16 November 2010, BaFin registered the first rating agency (Euler Hermes Rating GmbH) under Regulation (EC) 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies (Regulation), which entered into force in December 2009. Read more.

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On 10 November 2010, Tokyo AIM Inc., a subsidiary of Tokyo Stock Exchange Group Inc., announced that it will establish the Tokyo PRO-BOND market (a bond market for professional investors), though no exact date has yet been set. Read more.

On 29 June 2010, the Supreme Court of Japan clarified that courts may grant an order for compulsory execution against real estate held by an association lacking legal capacity, even though the real estate was not registered in the name of the association due to its legal capacity. Read more.

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On 15 November 2010, the President signed Federal Law No.294-FZ amending the Banking Law and the Currency Control Law, which will enter into force on 18 February 2011. Read more.

On 16 September 2010, the Central Bank issued Instruction No. 136-I regarding the performance by Russian banks of cash foreign currency operations involving individuals. The Instruction entered into force on 1 November 2010 and invalidated Central Bank Instruction No. 113-I, dated 28 April 2004, on the same matter. Read more.

Click here for the full text of this month's Russian Federation updates.

PLC Global Finance has published a special update, covering recent developments in the Russian Federation, contributed by White & Case LLP. This month's special update is on:

This, and other special updates, are available on the Russian Federation contents page, located on the PLC Global Finance home page.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has published its response to the feedback received on its proposed changes to the fund management regulatory regime in Singapore. Read more.

The Singapore Court of Appeal decision in Chee Yoh Chuang & Anor (as Liquidators of Progen Engineering Pte Ltd (in liquidation)) v Progen Holdings Ltd considered how the law should balance the rights of creditors with the company directors' desire to keep the company afloat when the company has financial difficulties and when payments were made to creditors. Read more.

In an application by Win-Win Aluminium Systems Pte Ltd (the Company) under section 210 of the Companies Act, the Company sought an order to convene a meeting of creditors for the purposes of approving a scheme of arrangement. Read more.

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In a landmark judgment, Oceanbulk Shipping & Trading SA v TMT Asia Limited and others [2010], the Supreme Court has limited the application of the "without prejudice rule". This judgment has far reaching implications with respect to the negotiation of settlement agreements. Read more.

Solvency II will be in operation across EU states by the beginning of January 2013. The Solvency II regime is based upon a three pillar regulatory approach, similar to that applied under Basel II. Insurers and reinsurers across Europe will be subject to a risk-based solvency regime which closely matches capital and supervisory requirements to the risks which insurers face. Read more.

In June 2010, the Takeover Panel's Code Committee published a consultation paper suggesting possible amendments to the Takeover Code following high-profile criticism of the UK takeover regime in the wake of Kraft Food's hostile bid for Cadbury. While the areas that will be the focus for changes to the Code are not surprising, the potential scope of the changes is perhaps more radical than the market anticipated. Read more.

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On 18th October 2010, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued proposed rules implementing the say-on-pay provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. This article provides key details of the proposed rules. Read more.

The US Supreme Court's recent decision in Morrison v. National and Australia Bank substantially narrowed the scope of foreign issuer liability under US law by holding that Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 does not apply outside the US. Read more.

Due to a recent change in US tax law, US employers sponsoring 401(k) plans that offer Roth contributions may permit participants eligible to take certain in-service withdrawals or post service distributions to roll over those amounts to a Roth account in the 401(k) plan. Read more.

Section 510(a) of the Bankruptcy Code provides that a subordination agreement is enforceable in a chapter 11 case to the same extent the agreement is enforceable under non-bankruptcy law. A key 2010 decision (In re TCI 2 Holdings) calls into question whether, in certain contexts, intercreditor agreements apply at all. This article considers this decision. Read more.

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