The road to completing LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE’s (“Louis Vuitton”) acquisition of Tiffany & Co. (“Tiffany”) was a bumpy one. Louis Vuitton and Tiffany announced they agreed on a revised merger agreement (the “Merger Agreement”), and closed the transaction on January 7, 2021 (LVMH). Over the past year, the two companies have had a rocky relationship. Louis Vuitton, the buyer, originally walked away from the initial agreement, and Tiffany sued to keep the deal moving forward. (Angelina Rascouet & Kim Bhasin, Bloomberg). The revised deal is now worth almost $16 billion. Id.

The 2020 presidential election could trigger an overhaul of private equity regulations, as the Democratic party, if elected into the White House, could unwind the Trump administration’s deregulation efforts. (APK Metropolitan News). The private equity industry is no stranger to change; the past ten years have brought dramatic changes to the industry. First, the private equity industry has grown considerably. The 2020 McKinsey Global Private Equity Markets Review reported there are now approximately 7,000 private equity firms, a 40% increase since 2010. (MJ Hudson). The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) estimated $2.7 trillion was raised in private markets in 2019, compared to the $1.2 trillion raised in public markets. (Zach Gibson, The Wall Street Journal).

President Trump continues to escalate the United States (“U.S.”) and China Trade war. President Trump has expanded his campaign against China’s government by going after Chinese tech companies, jeopardizing the future of technology and innovation as investors must navigate cross-border tech investments amidst trade tensions. (Kevin Cirilli, Bloomberg L.P.) The Trump administration’s campaign to slow money flowing from investment funds into Chinese companies is not easing anytime soon, as U.S. politicians continue to claim venture capital funds and endowments have directed growing potions of their investments into Chinese companies linked to human rights abuses and national security threats.

Due to the usage of mobile payment systems increasing, there is a need for increased regulation to prevent anti-competitive behavior. Throughout history, consumers have relied on some form of payment system to purchase the goods or services they want or need. From bartering to mobile payment platforms, there is one consistent theme regarding the evolution of payments, that consumers prefer convenience. Generally, mobile payments are defined as the use of a mobile device – commonly, but not exclusively, a smartphone or tablet computer – to initiate a transfer of funds to people or businesses. (Jeffrey M. Kopchik, FDIC). The use of mobile payments continues to rise globally as consumers are increasingly capable of purchasing goods and services with apps such as Apple Pay, Google Wallet, PayPal, and more. United States (“U.S.”) mobile sales are expected to grow from roughly 40 percent of e-commerce this year to 53.9 percent in 2021. (J. Clement, Statista). As use continues to grow, regulators must make a choice as to whether to actively regulate the use of mobile payments to increase competition for the benefit of consumers or allow the free market to reign.