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Financial Services UK
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August 27, 2024
BCLP Guides Fintech Plus500 On $110M Buyback Program
Plus500 Ltd. rolled out a $110 million share repurchase program Tuesday aimed at rewarding investors,which the financial technology business said reflects its "continued confidence" in its prospects.
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August 27, 2024
Pinsent Masons Steers Insurer On £42M Pensions Deal
British insurer Just Group said on Tuesday that it has taken on pension liabilities valued at £42 million ($56 million) from a retirement savings plan sponsored by a British farmer-owned dairy co-operative, First Milk.
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August 27, 2024
Gov't Urged To Reform Pension Tax To Fill Budget Gaps
The Labour government should reform £66 billion ($87 billion) worth of pension tax relief to raise extra revenue to help plug the black hole in public finances, a think tank affiliated to the party has said.
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August 27, 2024
Santander To Buy Back Shares Worth €1.5B To Trim Capital
Banco Santander SA said Tuesday that it is launching a €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion) buyback program as the Spanish group looks to reward shareholders with approximately 50% of its underlying profit.
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August 24, 2024
Italian Prosecutors Open Criminal Probe Into Yacht Sinking
Italian prosecutors said Saturday that they have opened a criminal investigation into the sinking of a superyacht that claimed the lives of seven people including a partner at Clifford Chance LLP and his client, British technology mogul Mike Lynch.
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August 23, 2024
Ex-Iraqi Minister Foils Reporting Org.'s Defense In Libel Case
An Iraqi politician has successfully persuaded a judge to throw out an investigative reporting organization's qualified privilege defense to his defamation claim, with the judge ruling Friday that an article about alleged corruption in the Iraqi oil business did not accurately reflect court proceedings.
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August 23, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
The past week in London has seen Google sue several Russian media outlets in response to challenges to the tech giant's response to international sanctions, easyGroup bring an intellectual property claim against delivery company Easycargo, and e-money business Nyavo challenge action by the Financial Conduct Authority.
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August 23, 2024
Oligarch Denied Bid To ID Client Linked To $20M Transfer
A judge refused Friday to let an imprisoned Russian oligarch force a group of companies to disclose the identity of a client who requested a $20 million transfer, saying that revealing the person's identity runs the risk of violating criminal law in Liechtenstein.
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August 23, 2024
Direct Line Reveals Capital Ratio Accounting Error
Direct Line Insurance Group PLC said Friday it has corrected a miscalculation in its accounting that distorted its capital buffer in its financial results for the year ending December 2023.
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August 23, 2024
UK Terrorism Reinsurer Appoints Howden, Aon As Advisers
Britain's terrorism reinsurer has said it has appointed Aon Securities Ltd. and Howden Capital Markets as advisers for insurance-linked securities transactions.
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August 23, 2024
Swiss Watchdog Recognizes Insurance Self-Regulation Plan
The financial watchdog of Switzerland said Friday that it has officially recognized the insurance industry's self-regulation concerning the training and education of insurance intermediaries, but warned that it will intervene if necessary to protect consumers.
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August 22, 2024
Fidelis Denies Liability For $238M Over Stranded Planes
Fidelis has argued it should not be liable for paying out claims totaling more than $238 million over planes stranded in Russia, arguing the lessors had not been irretrievably deprived of the aircraft under the terms of the policies.
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August 22, 2024
Barclays Denies Losing Trader £6.7M On Investor Platform
Barclays has denied costing a customer £6.7 million ($8.7 million) after he was blocked from trading on the bank's investor platform, claiming the market trader was aware of the uncertain situation of his shares and any loss was his own.
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August 22, 2024
Mike Lynch's Path From Tech Founder To DOJ Target
Friends and colleagues paid tribute to Mike Lynch following his death in a yachting accident on Thursday, hailing the British tech entrepreneur for the decades he spent furthering the industry despite the legal troubles that threatened to overshadow his career.
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August 22, 2024
EU Decision Keeps Tax Relief For UK Investment Schemes
The European Commission will allow U.K. government-backed programs that encourage private investment in small companies to continue offering favorable tax terms for investors, according to a decision published Thursday.
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August 22, 2024
Ukrainian Man Hits Cyprus Companies For £1.2M Loan Debt
A Ukrainian man has sued two banks in a London court for allegedly defaulting on a £1 million ($1.3 million) loan.
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August 22, 2024
'Beloved By Everyone': Attys Recall Clifford Chance's Morvillo
Clifford Chance LLP partner Christopher Morvillo, who died this week after a luxury yacht he was on sank off the coast of Sicily, is being remembered not only as a lion of the legal community but also as an "extraordinary human being" and a "Renaissance man" who was devoted to his family.
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August 22, 2024
Over 3M UK Pensioners To Be Dragged Into Higher Tax Rates
Government data shows 3.1 million U.K. pensioners will be dragged into paying higher taxes in the next four years due to the freeze on income thresholds, financial firm Quilter PLC said Thursday.
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August 22, 2024
UK Pension Deal Market Likely To Hit £40B In 2024
The value of pension insurance transactions in 2024 is likely to drop to £40 billion ($52.4 billion), an insurer has said, bucking expectations of another record-breaking year for the market.
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August 22, 2024
Mike Lynch's Body Recovered From Yacht Wreck
Mike Lynch, founder of technology company Autonomy, died when a yacht he was aboard sank off the Sicilian coast, his family confirmed Friday, after a trip the entrepreneur had reportedly chartered with his legal team to celebrate their victory in a U.S. fraud case.
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August 22, 2024
Bank Of Georgia To Buy Back Shares Worth $27M
Bank of Georgia Group PLC said on Thursday that it will launch a share buyback program worth 73.4 million Georgian lari ($27 million) aimed at cutting its outstanding share capital, as it reported increased profit.
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August 21, 2024
Top Commercial Disputes To Watch In 2nd Half Of 2024
A claim against BHP from victims of Brazil's deadliest environmental disaster, a $10 billion insurance megatrial over planes stranded in Russia and a legal challenge to the response by the U.K. financial regulator to the mis-selling scandal are just some of the trials to look out for in the second half of 2024.
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August 21, 2024
Sporting Co.'s Ex-Director Sentenced For COVID Loan Misuse
The former director of a Sussex-based sporting services company has been sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for 12 months, and 150 hours of unpaid work for exploiting a government COVID-19 business loan, the U.K.'s Insolvency Service announced Wednesday.
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August 21, 2024
Ex-Barclays VP Loses Bias Case Over Potential Promotion
Barclays Execution Center defeated dozens of discrimination and unfair dismissal claims from a former vice president, after an employment tribunal ruled that she was bringing up personal qualms against a manager who hadn't treated her badly.
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August 21, 2024
VAT Fraudster Loses Bid To Escape Repaying £1.4M
A man involved in a £40 million ($52 million) criminal tax fraud scheme has lost a bid to avoid repaying £1.4 million as a London court ruled on Wednesday that he had failed to prove he no longer had hidden assets.
Expert Analysis
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US And UK Law Firms Continue Trend Of EU Expansion
A broad spectrum of U.S. and U.K. law firms are now seeking fresh opportunities in Europe's fastest growing and constantly evolving sectors by opening offices in strategic locations across the continent, says James Lavan at Buchanan Law.
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A Look At 2023's Landmark Insolvency Developments
The insolvency landscape in 2023 witnessed pivotal court decisions that will continue to shape the industry in 2024, with a focus on refining director and administrator duties and obligations, and addressing emerging challenges, says Kerri Wilson at Ontier.
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Pension Industry Should Monitor Evolving ESG Issues In 2024
ESG thinking in the pensions industry has substantially evolved from focusing on climate change and net-zero to including nature and social considerations, and formalizing governance processes — illustrating that, in 2024, continually monitoring ESG issues sits squarely within trustee fiduciary duties, says Liz Ramsaran at DWF.
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What 2024 Has In Store For White Collar Crime Enforcement
Changes in Serious Fraud Office leadership and corporate crime laws in the U.K. signal a chance to kickstart enforcement in 2024, and companies need to stay alive to risks within their business, preparing in particular for the new offense of failure to prevent fraud, say lawyers at Latham.
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Emerging Trends From A Busy Climate Litigation Year
Although many environmental cases brought in the U.K. were unsuccessful in 2023, they arguably clarified several relevant issues, such as climate rights, director and trustee obligations, and the extent to which claimants can hold the government accountable, illustrating what 2024 may have in store for climate litigation, say Simon Bishop and Patrick Kenny at Hausfeld.
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Regulating Digital Platforms: What's Changing In EU And UK
Lawyers at Mayer Brown assess the status of recently enacted EU and U.K. antitrust regulation governing gatekeeper platforms, noting that the effects are already being felt, and that companies will need to avoid anti-competitive self-preferencing and ensure a higher degree of interoperability than has been required to date.
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How Boards Can Mitigate Privacy, Cybersecurity And AI Risks
In 2023, data privacy, cybersecurity and AI persist as prominent C-suite concerns as regulators stepped up enforcement, and organizations must develop a plan for handling these risks, in particular those with a global footprint, say lawyers at Latham.
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The Outlook For UK Restructuring Plans At Home And Abroad
The U.K. continues to be a center for large-cap, cross-border restructurings, though its competitive edge over the EU in this regard may narrow, while small and medium-sized enterprises are already likely to avoid costly formal processes by reaching out to their secured lenders for restructuring solutions, say Paul Keddie and Timothy Bromley-White at Macfarlanes.
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Foreign Assets Ruling Suggests New Tax Avoidance Approach
The U.K. Supreme Court's recent ruling in His Majesty's Revenue & Customs v. Fisher, which found that the scope of the transfer of foreign assets is narrow, highlights that the days of rampant tax avoidance have been left behind, and that the need for wide-ranging and uncertain tax legislation is lessening, says James Austen at Collyer Bristow.
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Lessons To Be Learned From 2023's Bank Failures
This year’s banking collapses, coupled with interest rate rises, inflation and geopolitical instability have highlighted the need for more robust governance, and banks and regulators have learned that they must adequately monitor and control liquidity risk to protect against another financial crisis, say Juliette Mills and Alix Prentice at Cadwalader.
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An Overview Of European Private Investments in Public Equity
Although still fairly rare, private investments in public equity may continue to be an attractive option for some European issuers seeking to secure equity financing, and advisers planning such an investment should consider the various local options, requirements and norms, say lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell.
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Cos. Must Monitor Sanctions Regime As Law Remains Unclear
While recent U.K. government guidance and an English High Court's decision in Litasco v. Der Mond Oil, finding that a company is sanctioned when a designated individual is exercising control over it, both address sanctions control issues, disarray in the law remains, highlighting that practitioners should keep reviewing their exposure to the sanctions regime, say lawyers at K&L Gates.
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Unpacking The UK's Proposals To Regulate Crypto-Assets
Recent proposals for crypto-asset regulation in the U.K. demonstrate support for crypto's potential, but there is concern around the authorization process for organizations undertaking crypto-asset activities, and new regulations will require a more detailed assessment of firms' compliance not previously addressed, say Jessica Lee and Menelaos Karampetsos at Brown Rudnick.
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The Top 7 Global ESG Litigation Trends In 2023
To date, ESG litigation across the world can largely be divided into seven forms, but these patterns will continue developing, including a rise in cases against private and state actors, a more complex regulatory environment affecting multinational companies, and an increase in nongovernmental organization activity, say Sophie Lamb and Aleksandra Dulska at Latham.
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UK Takeover Code Changes: Key Points For Bidders, Targets
Newly effective amendments to Rule 21 of the U.K. Takeover Code, which remove legal and administrative constraints on a target operating its business in the ordinary way during an offer, will add clarity for targets and bidders, and are likely to be welcomed by both, say lawyers at Davis Polk.