Financial Services UK

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FCA's 2024 Consumer Focus Still Has Firms Guessing

The Financial Conduct Authority shifted further toward results-based financial regulation in 2024 by requiring regulated companies to comply better with its Consumer Duty, forcing managers to make individual interpretations of the regime's often ambiguous requirements where more specific rules are missing.
January 21, 2025
'Mortgage Prisoners' Refused Appeal In £800M TSB Case

A group of former Northern Rock customers lost a bid on Tuesday to relaunch a preliminary battle in an £800 million ($987 million) claim against TSB Bank PLC, with a London judge refusing to allow them to appeal.
January 21, 2025
Investment Bosses Lose Appeal Of £37M Fraud Convictions

Two directors of an ethical-investment scheme failed to overturn their convictions for defrauding investors out of £37 million ($45.5 million), as a London appeals court ruled Tuesday that the charges against them were clear and well understood at trial.
January 21, 2025
Clifford Chance Adds White & Case Euro Private Credit Pro

Clifford Chance has hired a private capital expert from White & Case as a partner in its global financial markets department in Milan to expand its European structured debt practice.
January 21, 2025
Moderate Retirement Pension Gap Rises To More Than £31K

U.K. households face a £31,500 ($38,700) average pension shortfall compared with the amount needed for a moderate standard of living in retirement, according to a report by Hargreaves Lansdown published on Tuesday.
January 21, 2025
Reach Newspaper Group To Fill £5M Hole In Pension Fund

Publisher Reach PLC has confirmed it will plug a £5 million ($6.2 million) funding gap in one of its retirement saving plans after it discovered a "historical error" during preparations for a pension buyout.
January 21, 2025
Retail Votes The Key To Deciding Investment Trusts' Future

Investment trusts on the London stock market should work at persuading retail investors that they have viable plans to increase value for shareholders if they want to defend against activist shareholders moving in to seize control, lawyers say.
January 21, 2025
HMRC Wins Appeal In £197M BlueCrest Tax Battle

A London appeals court has sent a challenge by British-American hedge fund BlueCrest to a demand from HM Revenue and Customs for approximately £197 million ($242 million) in tax back to a lower tribunal for fresh consideration.
January 20, 2025
GlobalData Loses Bid To Bar Ex-Director's Share Options Suit

A former director of GlobalData PLC can sue for employee share scheme options worth £100,000 ($122,000) after a court ruled Monday that he had a realistic shot at winning his case that the company from wrongly prevented him from cashing in.
January 20, 2025
BoE Backs Gov't Call For Growth-Friendly Regulation

The Bank of England's regulatory arm told the government in a letter published on Monday that it will support economic growth by simplifying some rules for banks and insurers.
January 20, 2025
SocGen Can't Move €140M Clifford Chance Case To France

Clifford Chance has beaten Société Générale SA's bid to move its €140 million ($145 million) negligence claim against the law firm's European arm to France, as the Court of Appeal ruled on Monday that the case should be heard in England.
January 20, 2025
KPMG Probed In UK For Audit Of Ladbrokes Owner Entain

The accounting watchdog said Monday that it has started an investigation into KPMG LLP over its audit of international betting company Entain PLC for the year to the end of December 2022.
January 20, 2025
Gov't Gets Mixed Reception On Inheritance Tax Pension Plans

Proposals by the U.K. government to bring pension assets within the scope of inheritance tax will result in "numerous problems" and raise concerns in their current form, a trade body and consultants warned on Monday.
January 17, 2025
UK Parliament Calls New Treasury Unit 'Poorly Defined'

A new HM Treasury office set up to scrutinize fiscal policy lacks staff and its purpose is poorly defined, which means it could duplicate the work of other organizations, the U.K. Parliament's Treasury Select Committee said in a report Sunday.
January 17, 2025
Ex-Mozambique Finance Head Gets 8½ Years In $2B Bond Rap

A Brooklyn federal judge sentenced Mozambique's former finance minister to 8½ years in prison Friday for facilitating a corrupt $2 billion loans-for-bribes deal, ordering him to forfeit $7 million and imposing time beyond the six years the defendant has been incarcerated.
January 17, 2025
Aegon Calls For State Pension 'Triple Lock' Rethink

Insurer Aegon on Friday said a rethink of the state pension "triple lock" policy would bring more "intergenerational fairness" after opposition leader Kemi Badenoch sparked debate this week by suggesting her party may consider reforming the commitment.
January 17, 2025
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

This past week in London has seen the family of the late chairman of Leicester City FC sue a helicopter manufacturer for £2.15 billion ($2.63 billion), Vivienne Westwood bring a copyright claim against the late designer's foundation and blockchain giant Tether file a new claim in its ongoing dispute with crypto trading firm Swan Bitcoin. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
January 17, 2025
SFO Secures 1st UWO Against Convicted Lawyer's Ex-Wife

A judge ordered the ex-wife of solicitor imprisoned for defrauding investors on Friday to explain how she acquired a house in northwest England after granting the Serious Fraud Office its first-ever unexplained wealth order
January 17, 2025
EU Cancels Major Incident Report Guidance For Finance Firms

The European Union's banking watchdog said Friday it has canceled its guidelines on major incident reporting under payment services rules because of related requirements under a new regulation on how financial firms deal with technology risks.
January 17, 2025
FCA Vows Regulatory Review As Gov't Pushes Growth Agenda

The Financial Conduct Authority said Friday it will strip back reporting requirements and overlapping regulation in a bid to reduce the burden on firms, after the government urged U.K. regulators to come up with ideas on how to boost economic growth.
January 17, 2025
Scottish Power Loses £28M Redress Case Against HMRC

Scottish Power lost its appeal against HM Revenue and Customs on Friday, as a tribunal ruled that the energy company was wrong to argue that just over £28 million ($34 million) in redress payments it made after being investigated for regulatory failures was tax-deductible.
January 17, 2025
Oligarch Loses $14B Claim Over Russian Asset-Stripping Plot

Imprisoned oligarch Ziyavudin Magomedov's $14 billion claim against Transneft, Rostatom, TPG and others over an alleged Russian state-led conspiracy to strip his assets in two major port operators was struck out at a London court on Friday.
January 17, 2025
UK Delays Implementing Global Bank Capital Rules

The Prudential Regulation Authority said Friday that it will delay the introduction of capital requirements for banks in the U.K. by a year until Jan. 1, 2027, to allow more time for clarity about implementation plans in the U.S.
January 16, 2025
Litigation Funding Group Watching Mastercard Row For Now

The Association of Litigation Funders has said it is monitoring a spat between consumer advocate Walter Merricks and Innsworth Capital over the settlement of his multibillion-pound class action against Mastercard — but it has not yet intervened.
January 16, 2025
Trader Can't Dodge US Extradition Over $3M Ponzi Fraud

A London judge approved the U.S. extradition of a man accused of operating a $3.3 million Ponzi scheme, after finding the conditions at a New York prison are not so poor as to pose a "real risk" to his human rights.
January 16, 2025
Socialite Denies Using £200M Laundering Plot To Prop Up Biz

A socialite denied at trial Thursday that he was involved in a £200 million ($244 million) money laundering scheme that prosecutors say he used to create the illusion of success for his failing gold business.

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

What New UK Code Of Conduct Will Mean For Directors

The Institute of Directors’ new voluntary code of conduct is intended to help directors make better decisions and enable U.K. businesses to win back eroded public trust, although, with no formal means of enforcement, its effectiveness could be limited, says Sarah Turner at Eversheds Sutherland.
Russian Bankruptcy Ruling Shows Importance Of Jurisdiction

The U.K. Supreme Court's recent decision not to assist a Russian receiver in Kireeva v. Bedzhamov will be of particular interest in cross-border insolvency proceedings, where attention must be paid to assets outside the jurisdiction, and to creditors, who must consider carefully where to apply for a bankruptcy order, say lawyers at McDermott.
Decoding Arbitral Disputes: UK Awards Versus EU Judgments

The Court of Appeal of England and Wales' recent refusal to enforce a €855 million Spanish judgment inconsistent with earlier binding arbitral awards in England provides crucial guidance for practitioners navigating the complexities of cross-border disputes involving arbitration agreements and sovereign states, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.
How Listing Act Measures Will Modernize EU Capital Markets

The new European Union Listing Act, in line with the capital markets union initiative, aims to simplify market access for small and midsize enterprises, laying a foundation for a more integrated framework and representing a modernization milestone, say lawyers at Cleary.
Insider Info Compliance Highlights From New FCA Guidance

The Financial Conduct Authority's recent guidance to companies on identifying inside information clarifies the regulator's expectation of case-by-case assessment, helpfully highlighting that abuse of U.K.-regulated markets can arise earlier than some might think, say lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell.
A Look At PCAOB's Record-Breaking Enforcement In 2024

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board in 2024 brought more enforcement actions against auditors and imposed increasingly higher monetary penalties, showing that it was not afraid to exercise its power to fine and reprimand firms, a trend that will likely continue in 2025, say attorneys at Briglia Hundley.
2 Cases May Enlighten UK Funds' Securities Litigation Path

Following recent nine-figure settlements in securities class actions against Apple and Under Armour, U.K. pension funds may increasingly lead U.S. shareholder derivative suits, advocating for transparency, better risk management and stronger governance practices, say lawyers at Labaton Keller.
Interpreting Newly Released Consumer Fraud Complaints Data

The Financial Ombudsman Service’s latest complaint data focuses on scams and customer service, and demonstrates that as fraud is becoming rapidly more complex, financial regulators need to acknowledge that technology is here to stay and work together with firms to protect consumers, say lawyers at RPC.
Applying New FCA Guidance On Control Of Financial Firms

Buyers seeking to acquire or increase their stakes in U.K. financial services firms can streamline prudential review of their transactions by understanding the Financial Conduct Authority’s recently published guidance on updated change-in-control regulations, says Mark Chalmers at Davis Polk.
Anticipating The UK's Top M&A Trends In 2025

Conversations with market participants are focusing on five key questions about 2025's transactional markets, ranging from issues of artificial intelligence, to the boom in takeovers and increased regulatory scrutiny, says Layla D’Monte at King & Spalding.
Businesses Should Expect A Role In Tackling Fraud Next Year

If one word sums up a key trend in financial crime enforcement in 2024, it would be fraud, as enforcement agencies clamped down on consumer-focused crime — and businesses will need to be prepared to play a part in 2025 with the coming of the "failure to prevent fraud" offense, says Jessica Parker at Corker Binning.
What FCA's 2024 Changes Suggest For Enforcement In 2025

Though the Financial Conduct Authority is likely to enter 2025 hungry for enforcement wins after fielding intense criticism in 2024 over proposed policy amendments, firms can glean ideas for mitigating their risk from heightened scrutiny by studying the regulator's changing behavior from the year just past, says Imogen Makin at WilmerHale.
How The Wirecard Judge Addressed Unreliability Of Memory

In a case brought by the administrator of Wirecard against Greybull Capital, High Court Judge Sara Cockerill took a multipronged and thoughtful approach to a common problem with fraudulent misrepresentation claims — how to assess the evidence of what was said at a meeting where recollections differ and where contemporaneous documentation is limited, says Andrew Head at Forsters.
Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Cross-Border Contract Lessons

A U.K. court's decision this month in Banco De Sabadell v. Cerberus provides critical lessons for practitioners involved in drafting and litigating cross-border investment agreements, and offers crucial insight into how English courts apply foreign law in complex cross-border disputes, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.
Practical Considerations For Private Fund Side Letters

Side letters are a common way of formalizing negotiated arrangements between a private fund and a particular investor — and as the number and length of side letters per fundraise steadily climb, managers must consider the material legal risks carefully, say lawyers at Dechert.