LiHMDS-Promoted Palladium or Iron-Catalyzed ipso-Defluoroborylation of Aryl Fluorides.

A novel and efficient method for the synthesis of arylboronic acid pinacol esters via a palladium- or iron-catalyzed cross-coupling reaction of aryl fluorides with bis(pinacolato)diboron (B2pin2) in the presence of LiHMDS was developed. The Pd-catalyzed defluoroborylation of fluoroarenes is compatible with a variety of functional groups such as primary and secondary amine, ketone, trifluoromethyl, alkoxy, and boryl. Remarkably, no external ligand is required for enhanced conversion efficiency.