Christian Davis Quoted by Nikkei Asia on Outbound Investment Review

For its article “U.S. lawmakers weigh outbound investment reviews with eye on China,” Nikkei Asia quoted Akin Gump international trade partner Christian Davis.

The article discusses a proposed expansion of the U.S. government’s review authority through the creation of what is being termed a reverse CFIUS, or Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, the federal interagency body that reviews inbound investment and can recommend blocking of foreign investment on national security grounds.

The article notes that the government could, for example, require advance notice of plans to transfer production or development to countries “of concern,” such as China or Russia.

The reconciliation process for the Senate and House versions of legislation that would include this expansion began in May, writes Nikkei Asia.

Davis, whose practice includes representation of clients before CFIUS, said, “Given the bipartisan support for some type of outbound screening, there is a good chance that something gets passed eventually. It's possible something is included in the [reconciled legislation] through the conference process. Another option is that a bill gets included in a different piece of legislation.”