EMI Schemes: How To Avoid The Pitfalls
Webinar
Background: There are many pitfalls that unsuspecting companies can fall into when setting up and operating an Enterprise Management Incentives (EMI) option plan, which often only come to light on a corporate event when it is generally too late to do more than mitigate the damage or accept the consequences.
In this Eso Centre webinar our expert panel will guide you through the processes of setting up and running an EMI scheme including how to best address obstacles you might encounter and the impact of recent changes in legislation and regulation.
Chaired by Centre Chairman Robert Pay, speakers include Sarah Ferguson, Partner and Head of Employee Incentives & Benefits at Bird & Bird; and David Walder, Senior Associate at Bird & Bird.
Speakers:
Sarah Ferguson is a tax partner specialising in incentives. She heads the global employee incentives practice, advising both listed and private companies on executive remuneration and all-employee incentive structures. This includes the design, implementation, and operation of share-based and cash-based plans, their global implementation, related trust and tax work, and support on large cross-border transactions.
With over 15 years' experience, Sarah has advised private companies, AIM listed companies and numerous FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 companies, as well as share plan administrators and trustees, on the global incentives aspects of their transactions and advisory matters, including global rollouts. She has advised on numerous high-profile IPOs, takeovers, rights issues, placings and demergers. Though she advises on all types of share plan, her particular focus is on tax-favoured Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) option plans.
Sarah is an active member of the share plans community, having sat on the tax committee of the Share Plan Lawyers Organisation since 2015; recently reappointed to the SPLORG Tax Committee; sits on the Employee Share Ownership Centre’s Steering Committee; and has been invited to join the recently-formed Venture Tax Subcommittee of UK Private Capital (formerly British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association – BVCA) regulatory-compliant solutions for issuers and investors alike.
She is consistently ranked in Chambers for Employee Share Schemes & Incentives and, under Sarah’s leadership, the Bird & Bird Employee Incentives & Benefits (EIB) team has risen in the Legal 500 directory from a 'Firm to Watch' straight into Tier 4, with a special mention for client satisfaction.
David Walder advises private and listed clients on a wide range of employee incentive matters, including the design, implementation and operation of both cash- and share-based incentive plans, as well as advising on the incentives aspects of domestic and international corporate transactions, including funding rounds and M&A.
David has particular experience working with VC-backed start-ups in the technology and life sciences sectors, as well as advising on HMRC tax-advantaged share schemes (including EMI and CSOP), growth shares, LTIPs, non-tax advantaged share plans, phantom equity plans, and related incentives tax and legal matters.
Chairman:
Robert Pay has extensive experience in both professional and financial services. His roles have included being a Marketing Manager for a "Big Four" banking and securities practice, and a seven-year stint as the Global Chief Marketing Officer of leading international law firm, Clifford Chance. He was Head of Marketing at the London Stock Exchange where he was responsible for the marketing launch of AIM, the smaller companies' market, on whose Board he served. Immediately prior to relocating to the United States he was the Chief Marketing Officer for European law firm Taylor Wessing, where he worked with Z/Yen to create the Global IP Index. Rob has been an associate of Z/Yen since 1998 and has worked on a number of assignments including his current role chairing the Employee Share Ownership Centre.
Speaker(s):
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Sarah Ferguson
Partner, Head of Employee Incentives & Benefits
Bird & Bird
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David Walder
Senior Associate
Bird & Bird
Chairman:
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Robert Pay
Chairman
Employee Share Ownership Centre