尊敬的用户您好,这是来自FT中文网的温馨提示:如您对更多FT中文网的内容感兴趣,请在苹果应用商店或谷歌应用市场搜索“FT中文网”,下载FT中文网的官方应用。
State-held shares are back on the agenda. Popular during Europe’s wave of privatisation in the 1970s and 80s, so called golden shares — spezialaktie in Germany — allowed governments to wield control over a slew of public companies including utilities and oil and gas majors. By far the bulk had been redeemed by the turn of the millennium.
国有股重新被提上议事日程。在上世纪七八十年代的欧洲私有化浪潮中,所谓的黄金股——德国的spezialaktie(一种特殊股票)——让政府能够控制包括公用事业公司和石油天然气巨头在内的一系列上市公司。到千禧年交替的时候,大部分股份已被赎回。
With globalisation in retreat and protectionism firmly re-ensconced, British politicians are hoping to spark a revival. The defence committee wants them reinstated across defence companies, irked at US private equity owned Cobham’s $3.6bn bid for Ultra Electronics. More speciously, MP Tom Tugendhat is angling for a government share — and a 25.1 per cent stake — in Arm, the chip designer, which owner SoftBank plans to list in New York after its planned $40bn sale to Nvidia collapsed. Echoing Washington and Beijing, he argues that national security is part and parcel of technological leadership.
随着全球化的倒退和保护主义的重新确立,英国的政治家们希望能引发一场复兴。国防委员会希望在所有国防公司中恢复这种做法,因为他们对美国私募股权公司科巴姆(Cobham)以36亿美元竞购超音速电子(Ultra Electronics)感到恼火。更似是而非的是,国会议员汤姆-图根哈特(Tom Tugendhat)正在争取政府在芯片设计公司Arm的股份--约25.1%的股权,该公司的所有者软银计划将其在纽约上市。此前软银试图以400亿美元将其向出售给Nvidia。他赞同华盛顿和北京的说法,认为国家安全是技术领导力的重要组成部分。
State shares, like those held by tech founders, take a toll in terms of performance and free markets. An asymmetric veto on takeovers deprives other shareholders of the opportunity to sell; a particular handicap in the UK’s M&A-heavy market. Take the redemption of golden shares in water and electricity utilities in the mid-1990s. To the dismay of politicians, this unleashed a flurry of bids and within two years all but one of the 12 regional electricity companies had been flogged.
与科技公司创始人持有的股票一样,国有股会对公司业绩和自由市场造成影响。对收购的不对称否决剥夺了其他股东出售的机会;这对英国并购密集型市场尤其不利。以上世纪90年代中期赎回水务和电力公司的黄金股为例。令政客们沮丧的是,这引发了一系列竞标,在两年内,12家地区电力公司中除了一家之外,其他公司都被出售了。
The European Commission, more concerned at the impediment to the free flow of capital, was largely successful in stamping them out although holdouts — especially in the UK — remain. These include BAE and Rolls-Royce, both of which operate defence capabilities.
欧盟委员会更关心的是对资本自由流动的阻碍,它在很大程度上成功地阻止了这些公司,尽管仍有“钉子户”(尤其是在英国)。其中包括BAE公司和罗尔斯-罗伊斯公司,这两家公司都防御能力。
There is a case to be made for government vetoes when it comes to national security. Golden shares also have a use elsewhere, such as fostering environmental or social missions. The Thomson family’s founders’ share in Thomson Reuters, designed to safeguard independence and lack of bias in reporting, also makes sense. Slapping similar government rights on to tech companies does not.
在涉及国家安全的问题上,政府的否决权是有理由的。黄金股在其他方面也有用途,例如促进环境或社会发展中。汤森家族的创始人持有汤森路透的股份也是有道理的,因为其旨在保障报道的独立性和无偏见。而赋予科技公司类似的政府权利则不然。