On February 20, 2007, The Children’s Investment Fund sent a letter to the board of Dutch bank ABN
AMRO requesting that ABN AMRO explore options to merge, sell, or spin-off some of its assets, or even
the whole business. Never before had shareholder activism reached such a scale. As turmoil reigned and
speculation began, the largest bidding war in banking history began over one of Europe’s largest and
oldest banks. (A) Case, 6 pp. (B) Case, 2 pp. Case #08-01. (2008)

On September 22, 2006, Nicholas Maounis, founder of Amaranth Advisors LLC, reported to investors
that his hedge fund had lost approximately 65% of its value (about $6.0 billion of $9.2 billion) since the
end of August 2006. His hope was that, despite these losses, he would be able to convince his investors
to stay the course and not divest; if they divested, then Amaranth would join the annals of hedge fund
history as the largest financial meltdown ever. Looking beyond the local travail of Amaranth to the
potential global disruption of the world financial system, how would the situation play out in the long
term? 10pp. Case #07-09. (2007)

In 1991, Apple, Inc. struck a tax deal with the government of Ireland to pay exceptionally low tax
rates on income earned there. This was contingent on the condition that the California-based
company carry out all of its European operations in Ireland. This tax break has been described by
the European Union as “state aid.” To remedy the situation, the E.U. has ordered Apple to pay
Ireland €13 Billion plus interest (equivalent to $14.5 Billion) for unpaid taxes between the years
2003 and 2014. This decision has left Apple, the United States, and the Republic Ireland
displeased. (A) Case, 13 pp. (B) Case, 4 pp. Case #17-01. (2017)