For the vast majority of Israeli and Israel-related companies considering an IPO, London should continue to be the venue of choice. London has greater access to capital and liquidity than the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and lower barriers to entry than US markets, as well as greater opportunities for index inclusion. The common narrative in the media that valuations in US capital markets are superior does not fully reflect the reality. While some of the largest and most successful companies have achieved attractive valuations in the US[1], a US IPO is realistic only for the very largest Israeli private companies. Furthermore, for the vast majority that have chosen this route in recent years, post-IPO share price performance has been extremely disappointing. Whilst the geopolitical situation for Israeli and Israel-related companies is currently challenging, we expect that, once the situation stabilises, there will be increasing interest from those companies about listing in London, particularly as the UK’s forthcoming “once in a generation” capital markets regulatory reforms take effect.

BCLP assists Roadchef on its appointment of Phosters as new facilities manager of Roadchef's entire UK-wide estate of roadside service stations.

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA) introduces a suite of wide-ranging reforms to tackle economic crime and improve transparency over corporate entities. Under the ECCTA, Companies House will have enhanced abilities to verify the identities of company directors, remove fraudulent organisations from the register and share information with criminal investigation agencies.  This represents the biggest shakeup in its 180-year history. The ECCTA will also make significant changes to the law of corporate criminal liability.

The Abraham Accords Peace Agreement of 13 August 2020 (the Abraham Accords) heralded the normalization of diplomatic and business relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (the UAE). This historic regional shift in diplomatic relations ushered in a wave of business opportunities and strategic alliances, which have transformed the economic relationship between the UAE and Israel.