Tapping investors to become easier with Treasury review

The way that London-listed companies tap shareholders for cash is set to be overhauled by the government. The Treasury has announced a review of rights issues and other forms of fundraising, appointing Mark Austin, a top City lawyer with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, to chair the review. The Treasury said the review led by Austin would look at rule changes that would make it easier for companies to tap investors, perhaps levelling the discrepancies between placings and rights issues. It will examine fundraising models used in other countries as well as the role that technology can play in a bid to open up placings to more retail investors. The Times (£) The FT (£)