Sky Blog
Over the past decade, many companies have embraced the language and practices of stakeholder governance. Corporate mission statements, sustainability reports, and ESG disclosures frequently highlight commitments to employees, communities, and environmental sustainability. Boards authorize charitable-giving programs, diversity initiatives, and policies …
Prediction markets allow participants to trade contracts on whether or not real-world events will occur. These platforms have grown rapidly, and contracts tied to specific company activity are now actively trading, including contracts on IPOs, mergers and acquisitions, earnings call …
Many companies approaching an initial public offering face a familiar concern: whether the underwriters responsible for marketing the deal are fully aligned with the issuer’s interests. IPO underpricing – the tendency for shares to jump in price on the first …
Why do we still mark the beginning of corporate existence with the filing of a charter? Why file charters publicly when the content is overwhelmingly focused on internal stock rights? Why does the leading jurisdiction of Delaware make charters so …
Imagine you are the CEO of a fast-growing company that needs public capital to grow. You have a real business today, but much of your value depends on what you haven’t built yet: new products, new capacity, and a multi-year …
New leadership at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is making it a priority to reverse the decline in the number of U.S public companies. Its method: reversing regulatory creep and reducing the onerous burdens of compliance that deter all …
In 2023, a former employee and shareholder of a struggling startup called Teespring sued not just the company and its managers, but also one of its investors: Hydrazine Capital, a venture fund affiliated with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The plaintiff …
In advanced economies, the regulation of corporate governance during initial public offerings (IPOs) is used increasingly as a capital markets policy instrument. As public listings declined, private-equity financing grew, and regulatory competition intensified, lawmakers reconsidered the role of mandatory …
Convertible notes issuances have been surging in the last few years to a market size of approximately $300 billion. The increased activity has been bolstered by the high-interest rate environment, favorable equity market dynamics and macro uncertainty. Secular growth trends …
Over the last few decades, large asset managers have loomed over U.S. equity markets. Their prominence has fueled a lively debate about the effects of “asset manager capitalism” on a variety of issues, including corporate governance and stewardship, market competition, …
Initial public offerings (IPOs) are one of the most important events in a firm’s lifecycle, often representing its first major interaction with public capital markets. To assess value, evaluate risks, and determine offering terms, investors, underwriters, auditors, and regulators all …
Delaware retains the dominant position in the jurisdictional competition for corporate charters, but its lead looks increasingly tenuous. During the period 2024 through the first half of 2025, only five public companies with a market capitalization greater than $250 million …
Following discussions with Davis Polk and other leading capital markets law firms, the SEC posted updated guidance that provides a path forward for companies seeking to IPO during the shutdown. Because the SEC is currently shut down, it cannot declare …
Going public represents a milestone in corporate evolution, opening doors to capital markets and enabling expansion. Yet what if this achievement comes with hidden costs for the people who work at these companies? Our recent analysis of millions of Glassdoor …
Global capital markets are undergoing profound transformation. Over the past decade, there has been a marked decline in Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in most advanced economies, including those with highly developed capital markets such as the United Kingdom and the …
The second item on today’s agenda is a recommendation that the Commission issue a policy statement[1] (the “Policy Statement”) addressing the presence of a mandatory arbitration provision in the governance documents of a company registering offers and sales of …
The under-pricing of initial public offerings (IPOs) has puzzled researchers for decades. First-day returns average around 15 percent, translating into billions of dollars left on the table by issuers and picked up by investors allocated shares in the IPO. The …
Delaware courts reserve their entire fairness standard of review – the state’s “most onerous standard” – for, among others, cases involving conflicted controllers.[1] In recent years, there is a view that the standard’s application (or at least the procedural …
The venture capital (VC) industry has expanded greatly over the past several decades as innovative startups have become a key driver of economic growth and innovation in the United States. Foundational scholarly accounts of startup governance focused on the VC-entrepreneur …