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Fail to Prepare, Prepare to Fail – A Brexit Planning Guide for Businesses

Following the UK officially leaving the EU on the 31st January, the UK is in a transition period until the end of 2020, where the government will aim to secure a trade deal before the deadline. During this period, essentially nothing will change, but it provides business owners with much-needed time to prepare their businesses for Brexit. The below discusses areas that will be affected by Brexit, and what business owners can do to prepare.

 

Trade

It’s unclear at the moment to what extent rules will change for importing and exporting in the EU, as this is one of the key negotiation points between the UK and EU during the transition period. Regardless of what is decided, rules for importing and exporting to the EU will change after the transition period. Therefore, you will need to make sure that you have all the licences, permits and approvals required, understand the implications of changes at UK borders, and check how much you will need to pay in VAT and rates. It’s important to make sure you review these for the purposes of your own business, but generally to prepare for changes you should:

 

Make Sure you have a UK EORI Number

This is a 12-digit number that you will need to move goods in or out of the UK. You might also need an EU EORI number if you are responsible for landing the goods in the EU country of destination and making the customs declaration.

 

Feel like it's time to slow down?

 

Consider Adjusting your Contract Terms

Post-Brexit, trade could incur additional costs. You might decide to absorb these costs, or you might decide to change customer contracts – if this is the case, make sure you communicate this to your customers before any changes.

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Back to Confidence – Boris Johnson, Brexit & BAE Systems

After over three years since the EU referendum, where the UK voted to leave the EU, Boris Johnson signed the Withdrawal Agreement last Friday after the bill was passed to Royal Assent, therefore the UK will officially leave at 11pm (12am in Brussels) on 31st January.

So, what will officially leaving the EU mean for your business and investment into it?

Research by IW Capital, in which it asked 2,000 investors about life post-Brexit and the opportunities that will arise after the 31st January, has indicated that there will be an uptick in mergers and acquisitions. The research suggests that investors are positive about the UK’s prospects out of the EU, with 46% believing that if handled correctly, Brexit could be the best thing to happen to the UK economy. It also showed that 36% of those questioned believed that the UK will be a wealthier country, boosting their investment profile post-Brexit.

 

Ready to explore your exit and growth options?

 

It transpires that for 30% of those asked, it was in fact the handling of negotiations that affected investors’ decisions and not Brexit itself, so now that a date has been set and there is more certainty around Brexit, more investors will look to use their capital.

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Post-Brexit Benefits for Mergers and Acquisitions

Irrespective of the outcome and the eventual deal Britain strikes with the EU, there will be greater uncertainty for businesses in the near-term.

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UK Companies Set For A Rampant 12 Months Of M&A Activity

According to a recent report, UK companies are braced for a surge in deal-making this year, as executives prepare their businesses for life away from the European Union.

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Dow and DuPont get EU go-ahead

The $130bn mega-merger between US chemical giants Dow Chemical and DuPont has been given the go-ahead by the European Commission. Earlier this year, it was announced that the deal would be subject to an investigation from EU competition regulators due to antitrust concerns.

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EU court annuls block of 2013 UPS and TNT merger

Back in 2013 the EU blocked UPS’s $5.5bn takeover of Dutch-based TNT over concerns that the deal would affect consumers with drastically reduced choice and expected price increases for small parcel delivery in Europe. However, in an interesting turn of events, this week an EU court ruled in agreement with UPS that the EU’s probe, led by the Competition Commissioner at the time Joaquín Almunia, was wrong in its decision to block the deal.

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Fintech M&A Quells Post-Brexit Fears

Despite uncertainty surrounding Britain’s decision to leave the European Union in June, the British Fintech sector continues to grow and a flurry of M&A activity made last month one of the sector’s busiest months yet.

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M&A’s Silver Lining for the Brexit Vote

Regardless of which way the referendum goes this week, an end to speculation over the UK's membership of the European Union could pave the way for significant M&A activity across the FTSE All-Share.

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