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Corporate Crime & Compliance UK
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November 29, 2024
Pension Trustees To Repay £5.2M For Investment Breaches
A group of pension scheme trustees must repay more than £5.2 million ($6.6 million) into three retirement savings plans after the sector's ombudsman found they had breached their duties and acted dishonestly with a number of dubious investments.
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November 29, 2024
BHP Exec Pressed On Mining Giant's Dam Safety Procedures
A former executive at BHP Billiton told a court on Friday that he believes the mining giant is likely to have reviewed its safety procedures after the collapse of a dam that happened before the Brazilian disaster at the heart of the trial.
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November 29, 2024
Audit Watchdog Urges EU To Curb Harmful Tax Practices
The European Union is still not doing enough to stop harmful corporate tax practices that are costing governments more than €100 billion ($105 billion) a year in revenue, the bloc's independent audit watchdog has warned.
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November 28, 2024
Barclays Fights 'Shareholder Rule' In Privilege Dispute
Investors sought to prevent Barclays PLC asserting legal privilege over documents requested for disclosure in securities fraud litigation at a court hearing Thursday, after a judge ruled in a separate case that a "shareholder rule" exception to legal privilege did not exist.
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November 28, 2024
Police Detain 32 People In Raids On €297M VAT Fraud Network
Police have detained more than 30 people in raids on a €297 million ($313 million) value-added tax fraud network that spanned 16 EU countries, the European Public Prosecutor's Office said Thursday.
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November 28, 2024
UK To Ban 'Rogue,' 'Shameless' Firms From Hiring Overseas
Employers that breach visa rules to exploit foreign workers will be banned from hiring overseas help for at least two years, the government said Thursday as it launched measures to crack down on abuse of the immigration system.
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November 28, 2024
EU Closes Tax Investigations Into Amazon, Fiat, Starbucks
The European Commission said Thursday that it is closing tax investigations into three multinational companies — Amazon, Fiat and Starbucks — following a series of high-profile court decisions.
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November 28, 2024
Lawyer Duped By Fraudulent Barrister Overturns Firm Closure
A court has ordered the solicitors' regulator to end the closure of a law firm, concluding that it was unlikely that its manager knew that a "fraudulent impostor" was forging property titles and making false mortgage applications.
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November 28, 2024
BHP Exec Denies Mining Giant's Role In Brazil Dam Disaster
The former chief financial officer of Australian miner BHP Billiton told the High Court on Thursday that it was a "separate entity" from Samarco — the company responsible for running a mine that caused Brazil's worst environmental disaster.
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November 28, 2024
UK Trial Of Bulgarians Accused Of Spying For Russia Begins
Three Bulgarians "tasked to spy" for Russia gathered information on prominent targets before passing it along to a Russian agent, a prosecutor told the first day of a trial in London on Thursday.
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November 28, 2024
Former Finance Execs Must Pay £45M For Takeover Violations
The financial troubles of three former executives of MWB Group, an investment firm that has collapsed, does not preclude them from owing £44.8 million ($56.8 million) in compensation for violating the U.K. takeover rules by deceiving shareholders, a court ruled on Thursday.
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November 28, 2024
Ex-HMRC Compliance Officer Helped Husband Launder £3M
A former compliance officer with HM Revenue and Customs has been handed a suspended sentence for her role in a £3 million ($3.8 million) money laundering operation carried out by her husband, the Crown Prosecution Service has said.
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November 28, 2024
SFO General Counsel Sara Lawson To Step Down Early 2025
The Serious Fraud Office said on Thursday that its general counsel, Sara Lawson KC, is stepping down at the end of January after almost six years as the agency's most senior lawyer.
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November 28, 2024
FCA Reworks Plans To Name Firms Under Investigation
The Financial Conduct Authority issued "significant" revisions to controversial proposals for publicizing investigations of wrongdoing on Thursday, including a move to give businesses more time to make justifications to the watchdog before being named.
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November 27, 2024
BlueCrest Disputes 'Disguised Salary' Claim In HMRC Case
British-American hedge fund BlueCrest Capital Management LLP pushed back Wednesday against arguments from the U.K. tax authority that its portfolio managers are employees receiving a disguised salary.
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November 27, 2024
FCA Strengthens Whistleblowing Policy After Staff Complaints
The Financial Conduct Authority said Wednesday that it has updated its internal whistleblowing policy in the wake of complaints from employees that it has failed to properly act on intelligence provided by informers.
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November 27, 2024
SFO Must Disclose Cost Of Botched Unaoil Probe
The Serious Fraud Office must disclose the total cost of its controversial Unaoil investigation after a tribunal rejected the authority's argument that providing the details would hamper its ability to prosecute economic crime.
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November 27, 2024
LSB Needs Bigger Budget After Axiom Ince Probe Overspend
The body that oversees the regulation of lawyers plans to increase its next annual budget by 11% as it admitted it had overspent in the current financial year because of higher-than-expected costs from its review of Axiom Ince.
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November 27, 2024
Dyson Fights To Keep Workers' Forced Labor Claim Out Of UK
British appliance manufacturer Dyson fought on Wednesday to keep a forced labor case out of England, telling a London appeals court that claims that migrant workers were abused in Malaysian factories should be heard in the Asian country.
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November 27, 2024
FCA Fines Former Wizz Air Exec Over Share Trades
The City watchdog said Wednesday it has fined a former executive at budget airline operator Wizz Air Holdings PLC over unallowed trading in the airline's shares worth more than £4 million ($5 million).
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November 27, 2024
UK Investors Denied Appeal In Barclays Dark Pool Claim
A High Court Judge refused Wednesday to allow U.K. investors to challenge his decision striking out claims worth £330 million ($418 million) from securities fraud litigation alleging that Barclays dishonestly delayed publishing information about its dark pool trading system.
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November 27, 2024
Briton Fights South African Extradition In £36M Bribery Case
A British businessman wanted in South Africa over an alleged £36 million ($46 million) government bribery scandal urged a London judge on Wednesday to hit the brakes on his extradition following recent findings that the request is unconstitutional.
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November 27, 2024
HSBC Loses Challenge To €32M Euribor Rigging Fine
HSBC Holdings PLC has lost its challenge to a €31.7 million ($33.4 million) European Union fine for rigging Euribor, as a European court rejected on Wednesday the bank's argument that the penalty was imposed out of time.
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November 27, 2024
UK Court's National Security Decision Highlights M&A Risk
A court decision that compelled LetterOne, a Russian-backed investment firm, to sell a broadband provider highlights the regulatory risk posed to corporate dealmakers by the government's far-reaching national security discretion, including the costly prospect that they might have to unwind concluded transactions.
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November 26, 2024
UK Gov't Urged To Hold Off On Changes To Inheritance Tax
The British Labour government should hold off on inheritance tax changes for farmers, scheduled to take effect in April, that would make gifts to their heirs taxable if they occur within seven years of the giver's death, a U.K. economics think tank said.
Expert Analysis
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Keeping Up With Carbon Capture Policy In The US And EU
Recent regulatory moves from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the European Commission in the carbon capture, sequestration and storage space are likely to further encourage the owners and operators of fossil fuel-fired power plants to make decisions on shutdowns or reconfiguration to meet the expanding requirements, say Inosi Nyatta and Silvia Brünjes at Sullivan & Cromwell.
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How AI Treaty Will Further Global Governance Cooperation
The EU’s recently adopted treaty on artificial intelligence represents a significant step toward global cooperation in AI governance in emphasizing human rights obligations, although additional guidance and clarity would be beneficial to minimize varied interpretations at national level, say lawyers at Eversheds Sutherland.
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EU Investor-State Dispute Transparency Rules: Key Points
The European Union's recent vote to embrace greater transparency for investor-state arbitration will make managing newly public information more complex for all parties in a dispute — so it is important for stakeholders to understand the risks and opportunities involved, say Philip Hall, Tara Flores and Charles McKeon at Thorndon Partners.
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How Regulation Of Tech Providers Is Breaking New Ground
The forthcoming EU regulation on digital operational resilience and the U.K. critical third-party regime, by expanding the direct application of financial services regulation to designated technology providers, represent a significant development that is not to be underestimated, say David Berman and Emily Lemaire at Covington.
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Takeaways From EU's Initial Findings On Apple's App Store
A deep dive into the European Commission's recent preliminary findings that Apple's App Store rules are in breach of the Digital Markets Act reveal that enforcement of the EU's Big Tech law might go beyond the literal text of the regulation and more toward the spirit of compliance, say William Dolan and Pratik Agarwal at Rule Garza.
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Why Trustees Should Take Note Of Charity Code Consultation
The Charity Governance Code Steering Group's recently launched governance code consultation is unlikely to result in a radical overhaul, but with the bigger issue being awareness and application by smaller underresourced charities, trustees should engage with the process to help shape the next iteration of this valuable tool, says Chris Priestley at Withers.
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What EU Net-Zero Act Will Mean For Tech Manufacturers
Martin Weitenberg at Eversheds Sutherland discusses the European Council’s recently adopted Net-Zero Industry Act and provides an overview of its main elements relevant for net-zero technology manufacturers, including benchmarks, enhanced permitting procedures and the creation of new institutions.
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Complying With EU Commission's Joint Purchasing Rules
One year after the European Commission released its revised guidelines on horizontal cooperation agreements, attorneys at Crowell & Moring reflect on the various forms such agreements can take, and how parties can avoid structuring arrangements that run afoul of competition law.
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Tips For Implementing EU Sustainability Reporting Guidance
Lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell discuss the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group’s recently published guidance on double materiality assessments and offer takeaways on achieving a sustainability directive-compliant process that could enhance clarity and consistency among multinational stakeholders.
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How CMA's AI Strategic Update Addresses Industry Risks
The Competition and Markets Authority’s recent artificial intelligence strategic update, setting out the regulator’s understanding of AI risks and how it intends to address them, is indicative of its focus on incumbent technology organizations, although future political developments in the U.K. may also shape the CMA's approach, say Christopher Foo and Carol Slattery at Ropes & Gray.
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Labour's 'Fresh Approach' To Tackling Financial Crime
Given newly elected Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s background as a criminal defense lawyer and director of public prosecutions, an administration with strong views on financial crime can be expected, and revenue raising and proceeds of crime recovery are likely to be at the forefront, says Matthew Cowie at Rahman Ravelli.
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What UK Digital Markets Act Will Mean For Competition Law
The new Digital Markets Act’s reforms will strengthen the Competition and Markets Authority's investigatory and enforcement powers across its full remit of merger control and antitrust investigations, representing a seismic shift in the U.K. competition and consumer law landscape, say lawyers at Travers Smith.
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Examining The EU Sanctions Directive Approach To Breaches
In criminalizing sanctions violations and harmonizing the rules on breaches, a new European Union directive will bring significant change and likely increase enforcement risks across the EU, say lawyers at Hogan Lovells.
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What New UK Labour Gov't Is Planning For Financial Services
Following the Labour Party’s U.K. election win on July 4, the new government has already announced its key missions for economic growth, green investment and tax reform, so affected Financial Conduct Authority-regulated entities should be prepared for change and on the lookout for details, says Rachael Healey at RPC.
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Companies Trading In The EU Should Heed Mondelēz Ruling
The European Commission’s recent €337.5 million fine of Mondelēz is the latest decision targeting restrictions on EU cross-border trade, and serves as a warning to companies active in the region to check their contracts and practices for illegal restraints, and to perform audits to ensure compliance, says Matthew Hall at McGuireWoods.