How private equity firms can maximize the value of their portfolio companies by managing technology and data risks

Partners Andy Splittgerber, and Christian Leuthner shed light on recent developments in the use of cloud services and EU data protection issues. This includes a summary of and comments on recent publications by the DSK (the German data protection authorities) as well as recent perspectives on data processors’ reuse of data. Andy and Christian conclude by giving some practical tips for both providers and customers.

2023 has been the year for the tokenization of real-world assets. The theme has been all-pervasive, with businesses across the world seeking to tokenize a whole spectrum of assets ranging from real estate to music, film, art, loans, invoices and credit. In this episode, Reed Smith’s Hagen Rooke (Singapore) and Soham Panchamiya (Dubai) are joined by Wayne Tan, general counsel at OpenEden, a platform that has become known for pioneering the tokenization of Treasury Bills. The conversation seeks to unpack the concept of tokenization and growing interest in this area, surveys some of the key activities in the real-world assets space, and contemplates the attendant legal and regulatory challenges. This episode was recorded on 23 October 2023.

Anthony Diana joins Daniel Broderick, co-founder and CEO of BlackBoiler, to discuss how AI is already being used by legal departments to manage contracts, the requirements for making the use of AI for contract management, and how future developments in AI will impact contract management.

Does your game have a token and an NFT marketplace? What about a DAO for your hard-core players? It doesn’t matter if you’re AAA or casual mobile gaming – a token component or staking functionality is likely to involve regulation of some sort. Join Reed Smith’s Hagen Rooke (Singapore) and Soham Panchamiya (Dubai) and Victoria Wells, general counsel of Illuvium DAO (Australia’s largest Web3 gaming DAO), to understand what the regulations say about gaming, play-to-earn, NFT marketplaces, and some unrelated musings we’ve managed to pack into this podcast. Link referenced at 28:30 can be found at polygon.com. This episode was recorded on 23 October 2023.

Reed Smith’s Hagen Rooke (Singapore) and Soham Panchamiya (Dubai) are joined by Samson Leo, co-founder and Chief Legal Officer of Fazz, to discuss stablecoin regulation in various jurisdictions, including Singapore and the UAE. How will these regulations affect stablecoin issuers and projects? What do they signal about the state of play for stablecoins in the future? Also, there is general debate around the regulatory framework affecting crypto in this increasingly maturing landscape. This episode was recorded on 9 October 2023.

To deal with the increased risks surrounding regulatory inquiry, privacy compliance, and cybersecurity, it is vital that private equity firms and their portfolio companies focus on implementing internal policies and procedures to better establish healthy privacy and security hygiene. Please join Anthony Diana, Catherine Castaldo, Sheek Shah and Gary Barnabo to discuss why establishing policies should matter for private equity firms and their portfolio companies and which policies should be prioritized so the private equity firm can more effectively protect itself and its investment.

Reed Smith’s Hagen Rooke (Singapore) and Soham Panchamiya (Dubai) share their insights from Token2049, a premier crypto event. In this podcast, they provide a comprehensive overview of the event, highlighting their key takeaways and painting a picture of the event’s dynamic atmosphere, while also discussing essential topics such as the rise in tech infrastructure projects, maturing global regulations … and the importance of free drinks. Tune in to gain valuable insights into the rapidly evolving world of cryptocurrency and Web3.

In today’s day and age, no company is immune from the risks posed by data breaches, and that includes private equity firms and their portfolio companies. Fortunately, there are practices that can be implemented to minimize the risks and effects of a breach if one occurs – practices that protect the value of the portfolio companies. Please join Anthony Diana, Catherine Castaldo, Sheek Shah and Gary Barnabo to discuss why and how tabletop exercises with the private equity firm and its portfolio companies can help the private equity firm more effectively protect itself and its investment.

Technology and data risks at portfolio companies directly impact the value of these companies as these risks are becoming a major focus of due diligence when the companies are sold, often leading to a reduction in purchase price, indemnifications, or, in some instances, killing the deal. Whether you’re faced with a data breach that damages brand reputation or discloses highly valuable, confidential information or with privacy policies that do not allow for the sale of customer information, the importance of portfolio companies proactively managing these risks is paramount and can be done without significant investment. Gary Barnabo, Anthony Diana, Catherine Castaldo and Sheek Shah discuss these issues at a high level, introducing the concept and offering some steps that private equity companies can take to manage the risks, with future podcasts providing more specific guidance.

AI is all the rage, and employees may be using AI without their employers understanding, or putting in place a policy to lessen, the risks of using this new technology.  Find out about the risks and legal issues to consider and why it’s important to have a policy in place that governs the use of AI by employees.