Equities meaning

In this issue: Corporate governance Environmental, social and governance issues Directors Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Corporate governance FRC publishes report to support transition to UK Stewardship Code 2026 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has issued ‘Preparing for the UK Stewardship Code 2026: Applying insights from current reporting’ to support signatories as they move to the refreshed Code, which comes into force on 1 January 2026. The publication offers pragmatic guidance and examples of high-quality disclosures to help asset owners, asset managers and service providers align with the Code’s simplified reporting framework. Under the 2026 Code, a dual reporting approach applies: a Policy and Context Disclosure must be lodged every four years, complemented by an annual Activities and Outcomes Report showing how the Principles are put into practice. The FRC’s paper also explores areas including engagement disclosures, the selection and oversight of external managers,...

Lifestyle Equities CV and Another v Ahmed and Another [2024] UKSC 17 What are the practical implications of this case? The Supreme Court has delivered its long‑awaited ruling on the appeal and cross‑appeals in Lifestyle Equities CV v Ahmed, proceeding from Lord Justice Birss’s judgment in the Court of Appeal [2021] EWCA Civ 675. Lord Leggatt wrote for the court, with Lords Kitchen, Lloyd‑Jones, Stephens and Richards agreeing. The judgment sets out a series of significant conclusions: Accessory liability (as a joint tortfeasor) in respect of a strict liability tort is not itself governed by the same strict standard. Conversely, an accessory must possess knowledge of the essential aspects of the tort to justify imposing joint liability on a person who has not themselves committed it. The identical test applies whether accessory liability is said to arise by procuring the tort or by participating in a common design with the primary tortfeasor. An account of profits sought from an accessory will therefore never...

In this issue: Copyright & associated rights Trade marks/passing off Patents IP and technology General IP LexTalk®IP: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Copyright & associated rights Injunction granted against Craig Wright (Crypto Open Patent Alliance v Wright; Wright v BTC Core) In High Court proceedings brought by Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) against Craig Steven Wright, the court found squarely and decisively against Dr Wright’s assertions that he created Bitcoin as ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’. On the final day of the hearing earlier this year, Mr Justice Mellor stated the evidence was overwhelming and unequivocal: Dr Wright is not the author of the Bitcoin White Paper, did not act under the name Satoshi Nakamoto between 2008 and 2011, did not devise the Bitcoin system, and did not write the early iterations of the Bitcoin software at all. The recently issued...

Introduction to margin loans What is a margin loan? At a high level, a margin loan is credit extended to a borrower, secured by liquid assets pledged for the lender’s benefit. The collateral usually consists of instruments traded on public markets or exchanges, most commonly the borrower’s listed shares, which serve as the underlying assets. The outstanding balance under the margin loan facility is compared with the value of those assets through a loan to value test. Should the collateral’s value drop beneath an agreed threshold, a margin call arises, obliging the borrower to act—typically by adding cash or further security—to return the loan to value ratio to the agreed level. Because asset values are set by exchange-traded prices, the loan to value can fluctuate rapidly and is therefore usually checked daily at the close of trading on the relevant exchange, when prices are settled. This Practice Notice concentrates on margin loans secured over listed shares, though margin loans may alternatively be secured over other asset classes...

Short selling: the two key types The onshored Short Selling Regulation, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 236/2012 (the UK Short Selling Regulation), applies in the UK and sets out the definition of short selling in Article 2. Put simply, it is a method where a trader agrees to sell a security they do not presently own, seeking to profit by selling first and, later on, buying the same security back at a lower price so it can be returned to the original holder. The strategy hinges on a subsequent repurchase at a reduced price to realise a gain. Short selling occurs in the cash equities markets, and there are derivative equivalents that mirror the effect. A short exposure can also be established using index futures, options, and spread bets, offering alternative ways to implement the view that prices may fall. In summary, there are two types of short selling: covered short selling — a short seller borrows shares from a shareholder for a fee so they...

This Practice Note sets out an introduction to, and overview of, CREST, covering: what CREST is and the idea of uncertificated securities the legal framework the advantages of CREST and what companies must do to allow their securities to be held in CREST how uncertificated securities are held and transferred within CREST, and a brief introduction to the concept of depository interests It does not address how various shareholder and corporate actions are undertaken in CREST, nor practical guidance on the CREST processes around shareholder voting on resolutions, alterations of share capital, dividends, open offers, rights issues and takeovers. What is CREST? CREST is a central securities depository, run by Euroclear UK & International Limited (Euroclear), for the holding and transfer of dematerialised securities. It supplies core infrastructure for the electronic holding, transfer and related servicing of (or dematerialised settlement for) equities, debt securities and other financial instruments admitted to the system (participating securities). In broad...