Two House Democrats, Sander M. Levin of Michian and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, introduced a bill on February 23, 2016 that seeks to curb the use of inversions by American corporations. 1 A corporate inversion is a method by which a U.S. multinational restructures itself so that the U.S. parent becomes replaced by a foreign…
Category: Blog Articles
AMC and Carmike Cinemas to Merge
AMC announced this week its plans to buy fellow movie theater Carmike Cinemas1. The $1.1 billion deal will create the largest movie theater in the United States2. The deal, according to Wang Jianlin, AMC’s controlling shareholder, essentially boils down to a $30 per share cash offer, which represents a 19% premium over Carmike’s market price…
A Quick Look at Michigan’s Corporate Income Tax
In May of 2011, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder signed into law a bill that made numerous adjustments to Michigan’s tax laws. These changes included replacing the Michigan Business Tax with a corporate income tax. The Michigan corporate income tax consists of a flat tax at a rate of 6%.1 At the time he signed this…
FTC Charges Vulcun for Replacing a Game with Its Own App
On February 5, 2016, app-making company General Holdings Inc., also doing business as Vulcun, agreed with the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) to stop installing its apps on consumers’ mobile devices without their permission and plaguing them with advertisements on their desktop computers.1 The scandal started with Vulcun’s sneaky replacement of a popular browser-based game called…
Effect of the Devaluation of the Yuan on China
On August 11, 2015, the People’s Bank of China (“PBOC”), the central bank of the Republic of China, first devalued Chinese currency, the yuan.1. What exactly does this mean? The Chinese government changed the way that the currency was valued and this therefore caused a decrease in value. The value of the yuan was previously…
The Future of Bitcoins?
Bitcoin, digital currency, is a first Web-based payment system that charges no or minimal fees for a transaction. Several advantages are associated with Bitcoin and offers a viable alternative to existing currencies. Bitcoin reduces transaction costs (Marc Andreessen, Why Bitcoin Matters. (Jan. 1, 2014), http://dealbook.nytimes .com/2014/01/21/why bitcoin Matters.)) Bitcoins is decentralized in nature and provides…
Walmart Closes Stores; Hopes to Compete in E-Commerce
In January, Walmart announced that it will be closing 269 stores worldwide, including 154 stores in the United States.1 These closings will have the effect of displacing 16,000 employees (10,000 in the U.S.), some of whom will be absorbed by neighboring stores, and others laid-off.2 Although Walmart is aiming at opening 300 new stores in…
Making Bank Consultants More Accountable to Regulators
In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, banks and regulators have increasingly hired outside consultants to help comply with regulations and to implement new actions.1 The limited resources available to regulators and the high cost of hiring a permanent compliance staff have contributed to this trend.2 Consultants are usually brought in after regulators have…
Music Licensing Issues Threaten Pandora’s Business Model
Pandora Media, the popular music streaming site, has nearly eighty-one million users worldwide, and continues to generate over one billion dollars in revenue annually.1 However, Pandora is reportedly looking to sell, given the difficulties it faces in generating revenue and paying substantial licensing and royalty costs.2 Pandora is faced with increasing costs on two fronts….
The Sound of Music: One Music Giant’s Fall into Bankruptcy
Tomorrowland, Electric Zoo, Sensation, Stereosonic, Nature One. These famous music festival brands as well as the online electronic music store Beatport are just a handful of assets owned by the electronic dance music (“EDM”) giant SFX Entertainment, Inc. (“SFX”). On February 1, 2016, SFX filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after reaching an agreement with its…