LinkedIn: CEO Jeff Weiner

US networking website LinkedIn, which recently set up its international headquarters in Ireland, has cited "political and economic instability in some countries, specifically in Ireland" as one of the increased challenges and risks facing the business. The company, which provides a social-networking platform for businesspeople, lodged a document with the Securities Exchange Commission last week saying that it expected "to significantly expand our international operations in the future" in sales, technical and support operations.

The company, whose CEO is Jeff Weiner, said its international expansion would require it to make significant investments. "Expanding internationally may subject us to risks that we have not faced before" such as compliance with foreign laws, recruiting and retaining talent, longer payment cycles, credit risk and currency exchange fluctuations. The company also cited the risk of double taxation of "our international earnings and potentially adverse tax consequences due to changes in the tax laws of the United States or the foreign jurisdictions in which we operate".