Expert Analysis

• What Latest FCA Portfolio Letter Means For Payments Firms

  

  Charlotte Hill at Charles Russell discusses the Financial Conduct Authority’s recent portfolio letter to CEOs of payments firms, outlining the regulator’s expectations, and the steps that these companies may now need to take to ensure compliance and operational effectiveness.

• ECB Guide Targets Harmonized Cyber Testing Approach

  

  The European Central Bank’s recently updated guidance for testing organizational resilience against sophisticated cyberattacks is a significant step forward, highlighting the importance of a unified approach to financial sector cybersecurity and alignment with Digital Operational Resilience Act requirements, say Simon Onyons and Nebu Varghese at FTI Consulting.

• Opinion

  Prospects For New Fraud Prevention Prosecution Look Slim

  

  With the Labour Party's inherited patchwork of Conservative Party corporate crime legislation for preventing fraud and corruption, the forthcoming Economic Crime Act’s failure to prevent fraud offense is unlikely to be successful in assisting prosecutors bring companies to justice, says Matthew Cowie at Rahman Ravelli.

• What's Next After FCA Drops Troubled 'Name And Shame' Plan

  

  A closer look at the Financial Conduct Authority's recent decision to toss its widely unpopular proposal changing the test for announcing enforcement investigations may reveal how we got here, why the regulator changed course, and where it’s headed next, say lawyers at Hogan Lovells.

• UK Refusal Of US Extradition Request May Set New Standard

  

  The recent U.K. Supreme Court ruling in El-Khouri v. U.S., denying a U.S. extradition request, overturns a long-held precedent and narrows how U.K. courts must decide such requests, potentially signaling a broader reevaluation of U.K. extradition law, say lawyers at Dechert and Kingsley Napley.

• Insights On ESMA's Alternative Investment Fund Consultation

  

  Aaron Mulcahy at Maples Group discusses key points from the European Securities and Markets Authority’s recent consultation on open-ended loan-originating alternative investment funds, highlighting the growth in semi-liquid evergreen funds and explaining ESMA’s proposed standards.

• How UK Supreme Court May Assess Russia Sanctions Cases

  

  In two recent U.K. Supreme Court cases challenging the U.K. Russia sanctions regime, the forthcoming judgments are likely to focus on proportionality and European Convention on Human Rights compatibility, and will undoubtedly influence how future challenges are shaped, says Leigh Crestohl at Zaiwalla.

• New UK Order Offers Welcome Clarity To Crypto Staking Rules

  

  The recently effective Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 Amendment Order clarifies that arrangements for qualifying crypto-asset staking do not amount to a collective investment scheme, and by addressing an issue that curtailed staking activities in the U.K., facilitates the use of that practice, says Andrew Henderson at Goodwin.

• How EU's Anticoercion Tool May Counter New US Tariffs

  

  The never-before-used anticoercion instrument could allow the European Union to respond to the imposition of U.S. tariffs, potentially effective March 12, and gives EU companies a voice in the process as it provides for consultation with economic operators at different steps throughout the procedure, say lawyers at Crowell & Moring.

• Takeaways From BoE Progress Updates On UK Digital Pound

  

  The Bank of England’s recent update on a decision concerning a digital pound indicates that there is scope for innovation in the payments landscape that can help to boost economic growth, while keeping the U.K. firmly in the global conversation on digital currency development, say lawyers at Hogan Lovells.

• Key Themes From New PRA Supervisory Letters

  

  Two recent supervisory letters from the Prudential Regulation Authority outline priorities for international banks and U.K. deposit takers for the year ahead, including the need to strengthen risk culture, manage credit risk and govern data integrity, all of which indicate that banks will face greater regulatory interest in their internal controls, say lawyers at Skadden.

• Banker Remuneration Proposals Could Affect More Than Pay

  

  The Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority’s pending proposals to reduce banker remuneration restrictions bring obvious personal financial advantages for bankers, but may have repercussions that result in increased scrutiny of bonus payments and wider changes to workplace culture and overall accountability, say lawyers at Fox Williams.

• Rethinking 'No Comment' For Clients Facing Public Crises

  

  “No comment” is no longer a cost-free or even a viable public communications strategy for companies in crisis, and counsel must tailor their guidance based on a variety of competing factors to help clients emerge successfully, says Robert Bowers at Moore & Van Allen.

• EU Report May Influence Regulation Of Decentralized Finance

  

  The European supervisory authorities’ recent report on decentralized finance highlights the major regulatory challenges and increased cybersecurity risks of this ecosystem, and will likely provide useful guidance on how the market could be regulated to limit potential risks for investors, say Hubert de Vauplane and Hugo Bordet at Morgan Lewis.

• Market Infrastructure Regs Aim To Reinvigorate EU Trading

  

  The recently amended European Market Infrastructure Regulation, imposing a requirement on certain financial and nonfinancial institutions to maintain an active EU counterparty account, hopes to incentivize the central clearing of trades, although there are concerns that higher compliance costs will lead to a decrease in competitiveness, say lawyers at McDermott.