Financial Services UK

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Experts See Risks In FCA's Soft-Touch Response To AI

The Financial Conduct Authority has so far failed to detail its rules on artificial intelligence and is moving toward a reliance on companies to self-report, putting it at risk of deferring excessively to the sector it regulates, legal experts say.
August 30, 2024
UK's Labour Gov't Urged To Raise Capital Gains Tax

The Labour government is facing calls to raise the capital gains tax despite financial firms advising investors to sell off their assets or even leave the United Kingdom over the possible tax hike.
August 30, 2024
Couple Accused Of £29B Fraud Forced To Disclose Wealth

A Chinese couple could be forced to divulge how they built a multimillion-pound property business in the U.K. after a London judge ruled Friday that investigators had reason to suspect their money came from an alleged £29 billion ($38 billion) banking fraud.
August 30, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

This past week in London has seen television property developer Kambiz Babaee hit with a fraud claim, a Bitcoin podcaster reignite a dispute with Australian computer scientist Craig Wright and football club owner Massimo Cellino's company file a claim against ClearBank. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
August 30, 2024
Swiss Banks Face Legal Issues On Instant Payments

The Swiss Banking Association has warned that the requirement for the largest banks to offer instant payments from August is raising challenges around legal requirements like verifying the recipient's identity and sanctions checks.
August 30, 2024
Widow Alleges Stake To $3B Oligarch Fortune Is Made Up

The widow and daughter of a Russian cement tycoon have argued that his family "invented" a business partnership agreement to rob them of inheritance, in the latest development of a fight over more than $3 billion in assets.
August 30, 2024
Standard Life Named 'Safe Haven' For Defrauded Pensioners

Insurer Standard Life has been appointed as a "safe haven" pension provider for members of retirement schemes that have lost out to fraud, the company said.
August 29, 2024
Fight Against Dirty Money Should Target Lawyers, Report Says

Britain's use of foreign aid to fund the fight against dirty money overseas falls short of what is needed, an anti-corruption charity warned Thursday, as it urged law enforcement authorities to take action against those who help perpetrators.
August 29, 2024
Feds Say Ex-BigLaw Atty Can't Shake OneCoin Conviction

Federal prosecutors have told the Second Circuit that former Locke Lord LLP partner Mark S. Scott has "greatly exaggerate[d]" the importance of testimony from a government witness, some of which was later shown to be perjury, in a bid to have his money laundering conviction reversed.
August 29, 2024
Oil Execs Get 13 Years For $1.8B 1MDB Fraud

Two former PetroSaudi executives have been sentenced at a Swiss court to a combined 13 years in prison for embezzling more than $1.8 billion from Malaysia's state-backed investment fund in what prosecutors said was one of the biggest frauds ever perpetrated.
August 29, 2024
Pension Consolidator Would Be Useful, Broadstone Says

Proposals put forward by the previous government to launch a public sector consolidator of retirement savings plans run by the pensions lifeboat fund would be a "welcome addition" to the market, Broadstone said Thursday.
August 29, 2024
EU Warns That Greenwashing Risk Could Hit Investment

The European Union's markets watchdog said Thursday in its latest risk monitoring report that greenwashing and related malpractices are undermining investor trust and the credibility of green finance.
August 29, 2024
Another British Steel Pension Adviser Declared In Default

A financial adviser connected to the British Steel pension scandal has been declared in default by the U.K.'s lifeboat scheme.
August 29, 2024
UK Teetering On Pensions Crisis, Mercer Warns

The U.K. needs pension reform to avert a looming crisis that threatens a secure retirement for pensioners, according to a report by American consultancy firm Mercer LLC released Thursday.
August 29, 2024
Ombudsman Reports 70% Surge In Financial Complaints

Users of financial products lodged 70% more complaints in the first quarter of the 2024/25 financial year compared with the corresponding previous period, the Financial Ombudsman Service reported on Thursday, a jump from almost 44,000 to approximately 75,000.
August 29, 2024
Law Firm Can Use Client Comms To Fight Conspiracy Claim

A commercial law firm and its solicitor can fully plead their defenses against claims of conspiracy, a London court has ruled, finding that details of communication with clients are not limited by legal professional privilege because of a recently clarified legal exception.
August 28, 2024
Businessman Can't Force $1B Gramercy Suit Into Arbitration

A Wyoming federal judge has ruled that Gramercy Funds Management will not have to arbitrate its racketeering lawsuit accusing a Ukrainian businessman of fraudulently transferring more than a billion dollars from his agricultural business, a debtor of the Connecticut-based hedge fund.
August 28, 2024
Collapsed Forex Broker To Pay Whistleblowing Exec £564K

A compliance director at a foreign exchange brokerage who reported the firm to the financial services watchdog over its alleged illicit activities has won more than £560,000 ($740,000) after a tribunal ruled the company had unlawfully sacked him.
August 28, 2024
BoE To Widen Checks On How Finance Absorbs Disruption

The Bank of England has said it will develop its approach to assessing how financial markets deal with disruption to cover new technologies and more risks, potentially extending its scrutiny beyond the payments sector.
August 28, 2024
LDI Managers Urged To Influence Gov't Climate Policy

Liability-driven investment managers ought to be doing more to influence climate policy to protect members' pensions as government debt plays an increasingly large role in retirement savings portfolios, Lane Clark & Peacock LLP said.
August 28, 2024
Swiss Life To Acquire Green Hydrogen Biz For $106M

The asset management arm of insurer Swiss Life will buy Everfuel AS of Denmark in a deal that values the green hydrogen producer at $106 million and will take it off of the Euronext Growth market, the companies said Wednesday.
August 27, 2024
Money Laundering Cases Surge At Crown Courts, KPMG Says

The overall value of fraud cases involving money laundering heard at crown courts has risen nearly fourfold in the first half of this year, according a report issued by KPMG on Wednesday.
August 27, 2024
Ex-Barclays Exec Loses Appeal Over FCA Ban On Senior Job

Former Barclays wealth boss Thomas Kalaris has lost his appeal against the Financial Conduct Authority's decision banning him from holding a regulated senior management position at the firm he founded, as a London tribunal found in a judgment made public Tuesday he had given false evidence during interviews with the regulator.
August 27, 2024
Hong Kong Woman's Asset Freeze Extended Over Fraud Case

A London judge on Tuesday allowed a freezing order to be extended against a woman accused of defrauding her former employers of 164 million Hong Kong dollars ($21 million).
August 27, 2024
Starmer Warns Of 'Painful' Budget As UK Braces For Tax Hikes

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned Tuesday of "painful" decisions to plug budget gaps, including tax increases and spending cuts, looming in the Oct. 30 budget statement.
August 27, 2024
25 Banks To Adopt Tool For Survivors Of Economic Abuse

Twenty-five banks and building societies have committed to working with a new tool designed to help survivors of economic abuse, Britain's banking trade body said on Tuesday.

Editor's Picks

UK Draft Pay Fraud Rules Open Tricky Legal Liabilities

The government's new draft legislation, which will give banks longer to investigate suspicions of fraud before they send payments instructed by customers, will create a wave of new legal liabilities and lead to regulatory hurdles, according to lawyers.
FCA Fires Warning Shot Over City's Consumer Duty Failings

The Financial Conduct Authority has sent out a fresh warning to financial services companies highlighting how some of them are failing to comply with its Consumer Duty regime. But experts have told Law360 that the expectations are unclear.
5 Questions for Osborne Clarke Partner Nick Price

The Payment Systems Regulator is due to start forcing payment firms to reimburse victims of scams who have been tricked by a fraudster into transferring them money. Here, Law360 talks to Osborne Clarke partner Nick Price about how this new regime could mean uncertainty about compliance.

Expert Analysis

Embedding Consumer Duty: 6 Areas Firms Should Prioritize

The Financial Conduct Authority has repeatedly emphasized that complying with the Consumer Duty is not a tick-box exercise but an ongoing responsibility, so firms need to show that the duty is at the heart of their practices by staying compliant in areas from cultural change to customer vulnerability, say Nicola Higgs and Becky Critchley at Latham.
2 UK Rulings Highlight Persistent Push Payment Fraud Issues

Two recent High Court decisions, Larsson v. Revolut and Terna DOO v. Revolut, demonstrate that authorized push payment fraud continues to cause headaches for consumers and financial institutions alike, and with forthcoming mandatory reimbursement requirements, more APP fraud litigation can be expected, say lawyers at Charles Russell.
Open Questions 3 Years After 2nd Circ.'s Fugitive Ruling

The Second Circuit’s 2021 decision in U.S. v. Bescond, holding that a French resident indicted abroad did not meet the legal definition of a fugitive, deepened a circuit split on the fugitive disentitlement doctrine, and courts continue to grapple with the doctrine’s reach and applicability, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert.
Key Points From UK Prospectus Regime Reform Consultation

The Financial Conduct Authority's current consultation on U.K. prospectus regime reform proposals, including when a prospectus will be required and the requirements concerning content, is designed to enhance the attractiveness of the U.K.'s capital markets, say lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell.
Why NCA's 1st Seizure Of Sanctioned Funds Is Significant

The National Crime Agency’s recently secured forfeiture of a Russian oligarch's sanctioned funds was a landmark achievement, and is particularly notable because it was made under the Proceeds of Crime Act, illustrating how U.K. authorities can coordinate their respective powers to confiscate assets, says Lindsey Cullen at WilmerHale.
Takeaways From New FCA Rules On Research Payments

The Financial Conduct Authority’s recently published final rules on payment optionality for investment research, which involve a client disclosure obligation option, will be welcome news for U.K. managers who buy investment research from U.S. brokers, and for global asset management groups, says Anna Maleva-Otto at Schulte Roth.
What To Expect From Labour's Pension Schemes Bill

The Labour government’s recently announced Pension Schemes Bill, outlining key policy areas affecting the retirement savings sector, represents a positive step forward for both defined contribution scheme members and defined benefit superfunds, but there are some missing features, says Sonya Fraser at Arc Pensions.
Int'l Treaties May Aid Investors Amid UK Rail Renationalization

The recently introduced Passenger Railway Services Bill seeks to return British railways to public ownership without compensating affected investors, a move that could trigger international investment treaty protections for obligation breaches, says Philipp Kurek at Signature Litigation.
What EU Opinion May Mean For ESG Product Classification

The recently issued European Supervisory Authority opinion on the Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation offers key recommendations, including revising the definition of sustainable investments and making principal adverse impacts consideration mandatory, that could sway the European Commission’s final approach to product classification, say lawyers at Debevoise.
What New UK Listing Rules Mean For Distressed Companies

The Financial Conduct Authority’s recently published overhaul of U.K. listing rules makes it easier for advisers to restructure distressed listed companies, and in moving to a more disclosure-based approach, simplifies timelines and increases opportunities for investors, say Kate Stephenson and Sarah Ullathorne at Kirkland & Ellis.
AI Reforms Prompt Fintech Compliance Considerations

With the EU Artificial Intelligence Act's Aug. 1 enforcement, and the U.K.'s new plans to introduce AI reforms, fintech companies should consider how to best focus limited resources as they balance innovation and compliance, says Nicola Kerr-Shaw at Skadden.
Irish Businesses Should Act Now To Prepare For EU AI Act

Artificial intelligence is increasingly transforming the Irish job market, and proactive engagement with the forthcoming European Union AI Act, a significant shift in the regulatory landscape for Irish businesses, will be essential for Irish businesses to responsibly harness AI’s advantages and to maintain legal compliance, say lawyers at Pinsent Masons.
EU Investment Fund Standards Offer Welcome Clarity

The European Commission’s recently published regulatory technical standards for long-term investments, which granted managers greater flexibility with respect to open-ended European long-term investment funds, should help managers active in the space navigate the mandatory liquidity requirements for long-term investment funds, say Zac Mellor-Clark and Nishkaam Paul at Fried Frank.
Unpacking The New Concept Of 'Trading Misfeasance'

In addition to granting one of the largest trading awards since the Insolvency Act was passed in 1986, the High Court recently introduced a novel claim for misfeasant trading in Wright v. Chappell, opening the door to liability for directors, even where insolvent liquidation or administration was not inevitable, say lawyers at Greenberg Traurig.
Key Takeaways From Proposed EU Anticorruption Directive

The European Commission's anticorruption proposal, on which the EU Council recently adopted a position, will substantially alter the landscape of corporate compliance and liability across the EU, so companies will need to undertake rigorous revisions of their compliance frameworks to align with the directive's demands, say lawyers at Linklaters.