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Financial Services UK
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July 07, 2025
FCA Amends Exposed-Persons Definition In AML Guidance
The City watchdog published amended guidance on Monday on politically exposed persons that loosen the rules for holders of prominent public positions in the U.K., in a bid to make the safeguards more proportionate.
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July 07, 2025
Actuaries Warn Over Safeguards In Pension Surplus Rules
Most consulting actuaries do not believe that there should be a level at which pension plan trustees are required to release surplus funds tied up in their plans, in line with measures announced by the government, a trade body said Monday.
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July 07, 2025
Gov't Pension Reforms Could Add £29K To Workers' Savings
Millions of U.K. savers on average salaries could see their pension pots rise by up to £29,000 ($39,400) by their retirement date once proposed reforms that aim to "revolutionize" the sector are enacted, the government revealed on Monday.
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July 04, 2025
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
The past week in London has seen the owner of Crystal Palace and the troubled Olympique Lyonnais football clubs sue its current chief executive John Textor, Fieldfisher faces a claim by Georgian businessman Zaza Okusahvili, and a dispute partner at Travers Smith file a personal injury claim against the firm.
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July 04, 2025
Ex-Janus Analyst, Sister Given 11 Years For Insider Trading
A former City hedge fund analyst and his sister were sentenced by a London judge on Friday to a combined 11 years in prison for insider dealing and money laundering after they traded using confidential information to earn almost £1 million ($1.36 million) illegally.
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July 04, 2025
Financial Trade Body Sets Out Proposals For Growth To Gov't
A trade body for financial institutions published on Friday its recommendations on HM Treasury's plans to support growth and reinforce Britain's position as a global financial center, including reconsideration of the Consumer Duty.
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July 04, 2025
Ankle Tag Investors Deny £320M Conspiracy With Sacked CEO
Investors in a company which makes ankle tags have denied a £320 million ($437 million) claim that they conspired with the business's ousted chief executive to unlawfully profit from share sales.
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July 04, 2025
Pair Gets 12 Years In Prison For £1.5M Crypto-Investment Fraud
A London judge sentenced two men convicted of fraud to almost 12 years imprisonment on Friday for their involvement in a £1.5 million ($1.9 million) crypto-investment scam that spanned more than two years.
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July 04, 2025
UK Pensions Body Warns Over £15M Lifeboat Scheme Levy
The U.K. government should abolish an administration levy for the pension compensation scheme, a trade body has warned, after it emerged that retirement savings plans faced an unexpected £15 million ($20.5 million) bill.
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July 04, 2025
UK Pension Funds Braced For Further Trump Tariff Volatility
The U.K. pensions sector could face further market volatility in the second half of 2025 because of renewed trade tariffs or geopolitical conflicts, a consultancy warned Friday.
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July 04, 2025
Wider FCA Misconduct Rule Risks Over-Reporting Of Staff
The rule change proposed by the Financial Conduct Authority on non-financial misconduct for 37,000 companies outside the banking sector will generate pressure on businesses to protectively report employees to the regulator rather than risk later accusations of noncompliance.
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July 10, 2025
Weil Rehires Private Funds Partner From A&O Shearman
Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP said Thursday that an expert in private investment funds is returning to the firm in London from Allen Overy Shearman Sterling as part of the Weil's growth plan.
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July 03, 2025
UK Insurance Agency M&A Down 35% In 1st Half
The pace of domestic mergers and acquisitions in the U.K. insurance market slowed down considerably in the first half of 2025, making it the slowest six-month period for M&A activity in the sector since the first half of 2019, a financial services consultancy said Thursday.
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July 03, 2025
EU Regulators Close Ranks To Fight Money Laundering
Europe's financial regulators said on Thursday they would work with the bloc's new central anti-money laundering watchdog to ensure the effective exchange of information to combat white-collar crime.
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July 03, 2025
Man Denies FCA £3.9M Water Investment Fraud Charges
A man denied that he took part in a £3.9 million ($5.3 million) water investment scam when he appeared at a criminal court in London on Thursday.
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July 03, 2025
Ex-Perfume Boss Can't Ax Claim Over Russia Sales
A London judge refused Thursday to throw out a claim that accused the former boss of a luxury perfume group of damaging the reputation of his business after he admitted to exporting high-value products to Russia.
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July 03, 2025
Nigerian Bank Owner Plots $100M Share Offer, London Listing
Guaranty Trust Holding Co., the parent of Nigerian lender GTBank, said Thursday that it aims to raise $100 million in a sale of new shares to recapitalize the bank to a level required by regulation, and to list the shares on the London Stock Exchange.
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July 03, 2025
Pinsent Masons-Led Chesnara To Buy HSBC Life For £260M
British pensions company Chesnara PLC said Thursday it has agreed to acquire the specialist life protection and investment bond provider of banking giant HSBC for £260 million ($355 million) to give the group a "material step up in scale."
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July 03, 2025
Italy Clears Monte Dei Paschi's €13.3B Mediobanca Deal
Italian lender Monte dei Paschi has said that the country's competition authority has given the green light to its €13.3 billion ($15.7 billion) proposed takeover of rival Mediobanca SpA.
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July 02, 2025
UK Investor Sues Accounting Firm Over £633K Tax Bill
A U.K. investor accused an accounting firm of giving negligent tax planning advice and keeping him in the dark about correspondence with HM Revenue & Customs, which ultimately assessed nearly £633,000 ($863,000) in liabilities, according to a claim filed with the High Court.
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July 02, 2025
Oil Biz Seeks To Toss Ex-Directors' Sanctions Breach Defense
A Singaporean oil company urged a judge Wednesday to throw out allegations that it breached U.S. sanctions on Iran made by its alleged former chief executive, whom it has accused of embezzling €143.8 million ($169.2 million).
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July 09, 2025
MoFo Bags HSF Kramer Leveraged Finance Partner In London
Morrison Foerster has hired a borrowing specialist as a partner to join its finance and private equity groups team in London as the firm responds to "building momentum" in the market.
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July 02, 2025
EU Finance Watchdog Sets Guidelines To Avoid Greenwashing
European financial services businesses must ensure any claims they make about the sustainability of their financial products or services are accurate, accessible, substantiated and up to date, according to guidance from the bloc's financial watchdog.
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July 02, 2025
Ex-UBS CFO Wins £112M Divorce Fight At UK Supreme Court
Britain's highest court rejected an attempt on Wednesday by the former wife of a UBS banker to get an equal split of their £112 million ($152 million) family wealth, in a ruling that clarified how assets should be considered matrimonial.
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July 02, 2025
'Decisive' Reform Needed To Fix Pension Issues, IFS Says
The government should widen the age range for employees being automatically included in a work-based pension, one of a raft of proposals that would address a series of risks to the future of Britain's pensioners, the Institute for Fiscal Studies said Wednesday.
Expert Analysis
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What End of Payment Systems Regulator Means For Biz
The U.K. government’s plan to abolish the Payment Systems Regulator and absorb its functions into the Financial Conduct Authority should eventually lighten the compliance burden for businesses under the PSR’s remit, which may in turn encourage growth, but the proposed changes will roll out slowly, say lawyers at Farrer & Co.
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Compliance Lessons From Art Dealer's Terror Financing Plea
Regulated businesses can learn from the missteps of a recently convicted London art dealer, who failed to disclose sales to a suspected Hezbollah financier, by implementing compliance measures like anti-terrorism financing screenings as robust as their anti-money laundering policies and training staff to spot red flags, say lawyers at White & Case.
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UK Securities Tax Reform Will Be Welcomed By Investors
The proposed reforms resulting from HM Revenue & Customs' recent consultation on modernizing stamp taxes on shares, suggesting a single digital tax on securities to replace stamp duty and stamp duty reserve tax, are expected to reduce complexity for investors transacting in U.K. securities, say lawyers at Ropes & Gray.
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UK Capital Reforms May Help Startup Founders, VC Investors
Hidden in the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority's recent proposals on the definition of capital for investment firms are changes to the eligibility requirements for instruments to be included in a firm's regulatory capital — changes that may reduce the risk of investing, especially in early-stage fintech firms, says Andrew Henderson at Goodwin.
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EU Watchdog's ESG Dashboard Raises Transparency Bar
The European Banking Authority’s recently introduced ESG dashboard is a key tool in aligning financial institutions with the European Union's sustainability policies, and fundamentally alters the risk environment by transitioning climate-related data from a compliance afterthought to a core component of strategic decision-making, says Kristýna Tupá at Schönherr.
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What To Note As HM Treasury, FCA Plan New Crypto Regs
Taken together, HM Treasury’s recently proposed crypto-asset regulations and the Financial Conduct Authority’s new discussion paper on regulating crypto-asset activities provide key insights into the government's planned regime, which represents significant changes that will affect all firms providing related services, says Mark Chalmers at Davis Polk.
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Tools For Effective Asset Tracking In Offshore Jurisdictions
In light of a technology company's recent allegations that its former CEO maintained an undisclosed interest in offshore companies, practitioners may want to refresh their knowledge of the tool kit available for tracing and recovering allegedly misappropriated assets from both onshore and offshore jurisdictions, say lawyers at Walkers Global.
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FCA Review Highlights Valuation Standards For Private Funds
The Financial Conduct Authority’s recent review of private funds valuation practices underscores the increasing importance of conducting robust and independent procedures, offering an opportunity for fund managers to strengthen their current valuation frameworks and improve investor confidence, say lawyers at Greenberg Traurig.
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What Santander Fraud Ruling Means For UK Banking Sector
A London court's recent judgment in Santander v. CCP Graduate School held that a bank does not owe any duty to third-party victims of authorized push payment fraud, reaffirming the steps banks are already taking to protect their own customers from sophisticated fraud mechanisms, say lawyers at Charles Russell.
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FCA Update Eases Private Stock Market Disclosure Rules
The Financial Conduct Authority’s recently updated proposals for the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System would result in less onerous disclosure obligations for businesses, reflecting ongoing efforts to balance an attractive trading venue for private companies while maintaining sufficient investor protections, say lawyers at Debevoise.
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Key Questions As Court Mulls Traders' Libor Convictions
The U.K. Supreme Court is considering whether to overturn two traders’ Libor and Euribor manipulation convictions, with the appeal reinvigorating debate over the breadth of English common law’s conspiracy to defraud offense and raising questions about the limits of a judge’s role in criminal jury trials, says Ellen Gallagher at Vardags.
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Expect Complex Ruling From UK Justices In Car Dealer Case
While recent arguments before the U.K. Supreme Court in a consumer test case on motor finance commissions reveal the court’s take on several points argued, application of the upcoming decision will be both nuanced and fact-sensitive, so market participants wishing to prepare do not have a simple task, says Tom Grodecki at Cadwalader.
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How UK Proposals Would Simplify Fund Manager Regime
The ongoing HM Treasury consultation and Financial Conduct Authority call for input on the future regulation of alternative investment fund managers indicate that deliberate steps are being taken to make the AIF regime more suitable for the U.K. market, with the aim of encouraging growth and competitiveness, says Leonard Ng at Sidley.
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FCA's Regulatory Plans Signal Cause For Cautious Optimism
The Financial Conduct Authority’s latest strategy document plans for less intrusive supervision, a more open and collaborative approach, and a focus on assertive action where needed, outlining a vision of deepened trust and rebalanced risk that will be welcomed by all those it regulates, says Imogen Makin at WilmerHale.
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What Latest VC Model Document Revisions Offer UK Investors
Recent updates to the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association model documents, reflecting prevailing U.K. market practice on early-stage equity financing terms and increasing focus on compliance issues, provide needed protection for investors in relation to the growth in global foreign direct investment regimes, say lawyers at Davis Polk.