Most of Labour's business policies were trailed in Labour's Business Partnership for Growth, published in February 2024, and so most of the party's manifesto commitments will not come as a surprise to the venture community. Below we take a look at the main policies of relevance to the venture community...

The UK government has published new guidance on the National Security and Investment Act (NSIA) focused on early-stage ventures, spin-outs and international investors, but has postponed a wider consultation on the regime. The government had previously planned on launching a wider-ranging consultation on the NSIA regime this summer; however, it...

In January 2023 our Osborne Clarke Knowledge Lawyers made their business law predictions for 2023. Here, we see how those predictions are faring. General We thought that " businesses and their advisers are likely to sharpen their focus on the Opposition's emerging plans for the economy " – perhaps not...

Venture debt, or growth lending as it is also known, has become a catch-all term to describe a type of debt financing product available to early and growth-stage companies that are fast scaling but generally pre-profit. As venture debt facilities are designed specifically for pre-profit businesses, they require lenders to...

The chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, delivered a range of tax measures in yesterday's Budget to support an agenda centred on increasing business investment to enhance productivity and expanding the domestic workforce to encourage growth. The government's first full budget in nearly 18 months was accompanied by growth and borrowing forecasts from...

At the end of last year, the Financial Conduct Authority published PS22/11 on improvements to the appointed representatives' misconduct regime – strengthening reporting requirements, principals' responsibilities, and expectations for supervision. A recent High Court decision in the case of KVB Consultants Limited provides a timely reminder of why those improvements...

The Quoted Companies Alliance (QCA) and Financial Reporting Council (FRC) have both recently published new editions of their corporate governance codes. The QCA's Corporate Governance Code is the main corporate governance framework used by small and mid-sized publicly traded companies in the UK, including 93% of AIM companies. The FRC's...

The UK Labour Party set out a range of tax policy pledges with the launch of its Business Partnership for Growth plan in February, highlighting those it wishes to maintain and stabilise while leaving "on the table" previous pledges to levy VAT and business rates on private schools, introduce a...

Almost 70 of the 500 PFI contracts will end in the next four years and generally involve the assets reverting back into public hands. Typically, PFI deals are structured with a special purpose vehicle (SPV) established to deliver the project, existing solely for the specific project contract. Managing arrangements for...

The Takeover Panel has published its amendments to the jurisdictional framework of the UK's City Code on Takeovers and Mergers. These changes, which will come into force on 3 February 2025, aim to provide clarity and fairness while ensuring an appropriate regulatory framework for UK-listed and non-UK-listed companies. The Takeover...