Please join HELA for a lunch talk on Foreign Direct Investment Screening in the EU.
Christian A. Krebs, Partner at Jones Day, will give an introduction on the relevance of Foreign Direct Investment screening for M&A deals and other investments in European businesses, introduce the new EU regulation on Investment Screening and discuss its effects on Foreign Direct Investment in Europe.
The Topic
Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) are the backbone of a globalized economy. Yet, for the sake of national security and public policy, governments around the globe have started to push back on foreign direct investments. Therefore, investment screening becomes an issue for international M&A deals and other investments. Most notably, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) has recently earned itself a reputation of being a protectionist tool to avert unwanted transactions.
Taking the hint from the US, a public debate about scrutinizing – and blocking – FDI has commenced in Europe. In order to harmonize the varying screening policies in the EU Member States, the EU has passed a regulation on investment screening, which will come into force in April 2019. The lunch talk will discuss this new EU regulation and its expected effects.
Christian A. Krebs
Christian A. Krebs is a Partner at Jones Day, based in Frankfurt. He has more than 10 years of experience advising international corporations and financial sponsors on cross-border M&A transactions, corporate law, and corporate governance. Chris is recommended for large M&A transactions in The Legal 500 EMEA and Germany. Foreign Direct Investment Screening is a frequent part of his cross-border M&A practice. Chris worked at international law firms in New York, Brussels, and Buenos Aires.
Chris’ interest for EU and international law emerged during his studies at the Universities of Saarbrücken (Germany) Lille (France) and Warwick (UK). As part of his German practical legal training, he worked for a while on various EU law matters for an international law firm in Brussels. Chris graduated from Harvard Law School in 2011 with an LL.M. Degree.
Non-pizza lunch will be served. The lunch is sponsored by Jones Day.