Benefiting from buybacks (TT Nov03 p16-18)

From 1 December 2003, listed UK companies will be able to buy back their own shares and hold them ‘in treasury’ rather than cancelling them. At a recent Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) conference sponsored by Cazenove, a panel of speakers from all sides of the debate discussed the implications of this change, and debated the merits of the rules as currently proposed. Here, we review the discussion and highlight the enhanced opportunities for efficient capital management.