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A challenge by the Portuguese tax authorities of a multinational’s cash pooling arrangement – because the authorities felt it inappropriately used the comparable uncontrolled price (CUP) – has been denied by an arbitration court. The case should alert Portuguese taxpayers to review the arm’s-length nature of their cash pooling arrangements.

Tax experts from the Italian Revenues Agency (IRA) have given an important interpretative answer about transfer pricing transactions carried out by foreign commercial distributors held by resident groups, in a recent press conference.

TYPE OF DEAL VALUE ACQUIRER TARGET ADVISER TO ACQUIRER (TAX) ADVISER TO TARGET (TAX) Acquisition $24.4 billion Michael Dell / Silver Lake Dell Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz - Eiko Stange / Simpson Thacher & Bartlett - John Creed, Katharine Moir Debevoise & Plimpton / Hogan Lovells Acquisition $23.3 billion Liberty Global Virgin Media Shearman & Sterling / Ropes & Gray - John Baldry / Hogan Lovells Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson / Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy Acquisition $3.21 billion Total / SNAM / GIC / EDF / Singaporean Sovereign Fund Transport et Infrastructures Gaz France Sullivan & Cromwell Acquisition $2.1 billion Oracle Acme Packet Weil Gotshall and Manges / GTC Law Bingham McCutchen Acquisition $1.9 billion Silver Wheaton Vale (Salobo / Sudbury) Stikeman Elliott Acquisition $1.63 billion Charter Communications Cablevision Systems (Optimum West) Sullivan & Cromwell - Davis Wang Acquisition $1.2 billion Reliance Steel & Aluminum Metals USA Davis Polk & Wardwell - Rachel Kleinberg Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz - Deborah Paul Acquisition $1.1 billion Praxair NuCO2 Sullivan & Cromwell - Ronald Creamer Gibson Dunn & Crutcher Acquisition $267.5 million IKEA Pfleiderer (Russian business) Noerr - Elisey Balta Acquisition Undisclosed Guohua Energy Investment Hydro Tasmania (Musselroe) King & Wood Mallesons Herbert Smith Freehills TYPE OF DEAL VALUE ISSUER / BORROWER LEAD MANAGERS / ARRANGERS ADVISER TO ISSUER / BORROWER ADVISER TO LEAD MANAGERS Initial Public Offering $2.57 billion Zoetis J.P. Morgan / Merrill Lynch / Morgan Stanley Davis Polk & Wardwell - Michael Mollerus Secondary Offering $910 million NXP Semiconductors Barclays / Credit Suisse Simpson Thacher & Bartlett Davis Polk & Wardwell - John Paton Notes Offering $850 million Minerva Banco BTG Pactual / HSBC / Credit Suisse White & Case / Stoche, Forbes, Padis, Filizzola, Clapis Advogados / NautaDutilth Avocats Davis Polk & Wardwell - Kathleen Ferrell Convertible Senior Notes Offering $230 million KB Home Citigroup / Credit Suisse Munger, Tolles and Olson Davis Polk & Wardwell - Lucy Farr / Jones Day Registered Direct Offering $230 million Scorpio Tankers RS Platou Markets Seward & Kissel Davis Polk & Wardwell - Mary Conway Follow-On Offering $192.5 million Fleetmatics Barclays / Merrill Lynch Goodwin Procter / Maples and Calder Davis Polk & Wardwell - Rachel Kleinberg

Australian regulation; IRS information reporting councils; bonus deferral; US economic recovery; Indian indirect tax; OECD VAT draft; ATO High Court; BGZ Leasing case

In a recent decision, the Supreme Federal Court of Brazil, which has jurisdiction over constitutional issues, acknowledged the need to examine whether the Brazilian Federal Constitution was violated by decisions of the Superior Court of Justice regarding Decision No. 106 to rule that the applicable statute of limitations will be tolled for purposes of tax debts, and therefore the right of Brazil’s tax authorities to make tax assessments will be maintained, where a matter is not adjudicated because of delays by the Judiciary.

US taxpayers who seek to exploit the differences in the tax treatment of debt and equity will need to prepare for more aggressive enforcement by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The decisions in three recent court cases, all featured in this International Tax Review special focus, suggest how companies could deal with this approach from the tax authorities.

Russian taxpayers now have an opportunity to create a better way of working with the tax authorities.

Type of Agreement Country Country Date Signed Tax Information Exchange Agreement Argentina India January 27 2013 Tax Information Exchange Agreement Canada Uruguay February 5 2013 Tax Information Exchange Agreement Brazil Guernsey February 6 2013 Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement Guernsey Singapore February 6 2013

A lack of international consensus on the treatment of liquidity buffers, required under Basel III, is leaving banks exposed to the risk of double taxation.

Shell India will challenge a claim by the Indian tax authorities that it undervalued shares issued to a foreign subsidiary on the grounds that the order is contrary to tax regulations. If Shell is unsuccessful the outcome could influence other multinationals to change their valuation method for share issuance.