Switzerland

Last week, the Swiss Federal Council announced a report on the legal framework for Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) for the financial services industry, CrowdfundInsider.com reported. According to the Council, the Swiss legal framework “is well suited to deal with new technologies including blockchain.” Even while noting the benefits of DLT, Council believes there is “an occasional need for adjustment,” including the monitoring and review of the potential for money laundering (AML) and terror financing risk pertaining to the usage of digital assets.

Credit Suisse’s plans to buy back as much as SFr3bn of shares and modestly increase its dividend received a lukewarm reception from analysts and investors, who were pushing for more capital to be returned after a sharp fall in the stock, the Financial Times reported. The Swiss bank said it expected to repurchase SFr1bn ($1bn) in each of the next two years and would attempt to buy back a further SFr1bn if market conditions allow, while increasing the dividend by 5 per cent a year.

Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc said on Tuesday it has received a $681 million “stalking horse bid” by Swiss commodities trader Mercuria Energy Group Ltd, Reuters reported. The proposal has been filed with the U.S. bankruptcy court for the southern district of New York, the marine fuel logistics company said in a statement. The stalking horse agreement would imply that any other bids that come in must be higher than the offer from Mercuria. Earlier this month, Aegean Marine and some of its subsidiaries filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Credit Suisse reported a mixed set of third-quarter results, with revenue and net income missing expectations after a sharp fall in trading income, taking the shine off an almost 70 per cent surge in overall pre-tax profits, the Financial Times reported. The global markets division made an unexpected pre-tax loss of SFr96m ($96m) in the period after fixed-income revenues plunged 20 per cent, worse than the 15 per cent declines seen at Deutsche Bank and BNP Paribas recently.

Investor advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) has reversed its initial advice to Aryzta shareholders to vote down the company’s planned €800 million capital raise, while two other proxy advisors have come out in favour of the plan, the Irish Times reported. Following discussions with management and the food group’s largest shareholder Cobas, which is opposing the deal, ISS said it was now advising investors to support the rights issue, which will be put

Aryzta, the troubled Irish-Swiss baked goods group, has been urged to halve the scale of a planned €800 million rights issue designed to pay down debt and fund the group through a major restructuring of its operations, The Irish Times reported. Cobas Asset Management, the Spanish group that is Aryzta’s largest single shareholder, said on Monday that it is requesting an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders to reduce the money being raised to €400 million. Cobas owns almost 15 per cent of Aryzta’s voting stock.