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Financial Services UK
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March 07, 2024
UK Launches Case To Disqualify Lex Greensill As A Director
The U.K. government said Thursday that it is seeking to disqualify Lex Greensill, the founder of collapsed finance company Greensill Capital, from running another company for 15 years.
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March 07, 2024
Visa, Mastercard Fail To Ax Retailers' Swipe Fees Class Action
An English appeals court Thursday said the U.K.'s antitrust tribunal was entitled to have approved a proposed class action against Visa and Mastercard over allegedly unfairly imposing interchange rules on retailers, finding it had a "broad margin of discretion" over case management decisions.
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March 07, 2024
Irish Central Bank Plans Modernized Consumer Protection
The Central Bank of Ireland opened a consultation on Thursday on plans to modernize the Consumer Protection Code and clarify the obligations financial companies face for managing such risks as climate change.
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March 07, 2024
Libor Convictions Like Post Office Scandal, Lawmakers Say
The prosecution of traders over rigging of benchmark interest rates was a "miscarriage of justice" similar to the Post Office scandal, two politicians said on Thursday, a week before two former bankers challenge their convictions in a landmark appeal.
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March 07, 2024
Slaughter & May Advises Nationwide's £2.9B Virgin Money Bid
Nationwide Building Society said Thursday that it plans to buy Virgin Money UK in a £2.9 billion ($3.7 billion) cash deal that would create the second-largest mortgage and savings provider in Britain.
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March 06, 2024
FCA Did Not Unfairly Fire Staffer Amid Harassment Probe
The U.K.'s financial watchdog did not unfairly sack a supervisor based on his race after an internal investigation held that he had harassed another employee, a London appeals tribunal has ruled.
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March 06, 2024
PE Firm Continues Shedding Stake In Ads Biz For £47M
An investment company backed by private equity firm Apax Partners said Wednesday that it has diluted its stake in online classifieds group Baltic Classifieds Group PLC and raised £47.3 million ($60.2 million) in the process.
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March 06, 2024
Dentons Says Client Checks Adhered To Relevant AML Rules
Dentons told a tribunal on Wednesday that the Solicitors Regulation Authority's case accusing the firm of breaching money laundering regulations by failing to adequately investigate a former client's wealth is based on current regulations rather than those in force at the time.
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March 06, 2024
Businessman Can't Escape €50M Investment Fraud Case
A judge has declined to throw out a chunk of a €50 million ($54.4 million) investment fraud case brought by an Italian investment vehicle, finding allegations against company secretary Federico Faleschini cannot be divorced from the wider claim.
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March 06, 2024
UK Cuts Tax, Reforms Non-Dom Rules In Pre-Election Budget
The U.K. government unveiled another cut in payroll taxes and changes to rules on non-domicile status on Wednesday as it presented its election-year spring Budget.
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March 06, 2024
Gov't Cools Its Tone On Pension 'Pot For Life' Plans
A U.K. government update on Wednesday on policy plans for pension pots for life for retirement savers appeared to signal a more cautious tone after pushback from the sector, financial experts have said.
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March 06, 2024
Lloyd's Says Women Hold 35% Of Top Insurance Market Jobs
Lloyd's of London has said the proportion of women in leadership roles at the specialist insurance marketplace has now increased by three percentage points to 35%, fulfilling the short-term target it set in 2020.
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March 06, 2024
Pensions Watchdog Outlines New Funding Strategy Reporting
The pensions watchdog has laid out new requirements for trustees when they report on their funding plans, as analysts warned of the growing regulatory burden on the sector.
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March 06, 2024
Blackstone, Thomson Reuters Sell £1.4B Shares In LSE Owner
A consortium including Blackstone Inc. and Thomson Reuters Corp. has sold off £1.4 billion ($1.8 billion) worth of shares in the London Stock Exchange Group, Citigroup, which is acting as a bookrunner, said Wednesday.
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March 05, 2024
DLA Piper Brings On HMRC Vet For Corp. Crime Team
DLA Piper added a member to its corporate crime and investigations team in London, an HM Revenue & Customs veteran most recently at Pinsent Masons, the firm announced.
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March 05, 2024
Repsol Beats Lufthansa Unit In R+, AirPlus EU TM Clash
Repsol has fought off a Lufthansa unit's bid to block its "R+" trademark after convincing a European appeals board that consumers would not confuse the sign with the German carrier's "AirPlus" set of logos.
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March 05, 2024
PwC Did Not Push Trainee Of 11 Years To Quit Over Absence
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP did not force a staffer who had been a trainee for 11 years to resign when it invited him to a disciplinary hearing over his unauthorized absence and rejected his bid to write it off as retrospective holiday leave, a tribunal has ruled.
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March 05, 2024
SRA Investigator Calls Dentons' AML Checks 'Concerning'
Dentons faced allegations from a Solicitors Regulation Authority investigator at a tribunal Tuesday that the way the firm handled a politically exposed client were "concerning" amid claims it breached money laundering regulations by failing to make adequate checks.
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March 05, 2024
Ex-Russian Minister Renews Bid To Jail Deripaska In UK
Former Russian minister Vladimir Chernukhin urged an appeals court Tuesday to revive his bid to jail his ex-business associate Oleg Deripaska for contempt of court, arguing an earlier judge was wrong to find than an agreement to preserve assets had not been breached.
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March 05, 2024
Taylor Wessing Hires Fintech Reg Pro From Freshfields
Taylor Wessing LLP has hired a financial services regulatory expert Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP as a partner, as it eyes a boost to advising on U.K. and European laws, with a particular focus on financial technology.
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March 05, 2024
Spending Watchdog Warns BoE As Compliance Breaches Rise
The U.K. public spending watchdog has urged the Bank of England to examine its controls after it found a significant increase in breaches of staff policies at the central bank.
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March 05, 2024
Disruptor Bank Monzo Valued At $5B After $430M Fund Raise
Monzo Bank Ltd. said Tuesday that it has raised $430 million in its latest funding round, boosting the valuation of the British challenger bank to $5 billion as it eyes accelerating expansion.
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March 05, 2024
FCA Warns Firms To Remedy Failings In AML Controls
The Financial Conduct Authority has fired off a warning to the chief executives of 1,000 firms it regulates for money laundering purposes, telling them on Tuesday to tackle failings in their controls.
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March 04, 2024
FERC Slams Brakes On $1.1B Bridgepoint-ECP Deal
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has blocked U.K. asset manager Bridgepoint Group PLC's proposed £835 million ($1.1 billion) purchase of Energy Capital Partners LP, saying the companies haven't shown the merger wouldn't affect competition in U.S. electricity markets.
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March 04, 2024
Ex-Integer Strategic Exec Wins £100K Sex Harassment Payout
A tribunal has ordered the chairman of Integer Wealth to pay a female director almost £100,000 ($127,000) in compensation for sex-based discrimination and harassment after it ruled that he demoted her after she rejected his romantic advances.
Expert Analysis
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An ICO Reminder On Managing Subject Access Requests
Although the U.K. Information Commissioner's Office’s recent seven reprimands regarding mismanagement of data subject access requests are unusual, it is worth organizations considering what resources and training may be available to ensure these are properly managed in the future, says Ross McKenzie at Addleshaw Goddard.
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Foreign Direct Investment Considerations For Buyers, Sellers
The rapidly developing legal and regulatory foreign direct investment landscape means the challenge for deal makers is in navigating the continuously changing rules and understanding the manner in which regulators interpret them, says Kurt Ma at BCLP.
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Widely Forecast UK Recession Is Likely To Reshape M&As
Despite the economic downturn in the U.K., transactions will continue to get done in 2023, albeit with more complex terms and a greater focus on undertaking vigorous due diligence on customer relationships and contracts, say attorneys at Skadden.
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New Economic Crime Bill Brings Welcome Reforms
The proposed amendments to the Proceeds of Crime Act in the new Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill have so far largely gone under the radar, but they are a positive step that will reduce the burden on the National Crime Agency, says Ruth Paley at Eversheds Sutherland.
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EU Beneficial Owners' Privacy Ruling Conflicts With UK Law
A recent decision by the Court of Justice of the EU to strike down a requirement for registers of corporates’ beneficial owners to be available to the public is an example of EU-U.K. divergence, with the EU valuing privacy over transparency and the U.K. making the opposite calculation, says John Binns at BCL.
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How Overseas Property Verification Poses Risks To Attorneys
The recently launched register of overseas entities, requiring verification of foreign owners hoping to purchase U.K. property, could expose attorneys to criminal prosecution, professional negligence claims and reputational damage if they do not complete these checks to the required standard, which nevertheless remains murky, says Harriet Holmes at Thirdfort.
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Lessons That May Be Learned From The Demise Of Made.com
With Made.com going into administration, companies that may face similar challenges should take on board that the earlier adequate preemptive planning is considered, the more financial and legal options there will be to avoid last minute firefighting and to focus instead on strengthening the business, says Eleni Michaela at Faegre Drinker.
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High Court Ruling Clarifies Notice Under Swaps Agreement
The English High Court's recent decision in Macquarie v. Phelan Energy, the first judgment to consider the validity of a failure-to-pay notice under the 2002 International Swaps and Derivatives Association master agreement, gives important guidance to financial institutions and derivatives trading participants about the level of accuracy required in those notices, say attorneys at Norton Rose.
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The FTX Fallout So Far And What May Come Next
While the downfall of FTX is likely to cause substantial losses and lead to extensive litigation, it will hopefully precipitate a renewed focus on regulating the crypto market in a responsible way that gives more protection to consumers, says Dan Wyatt at RPC.
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A Look At The Swath Of Claims Amazon Faces Worldwide
The increasing number of claims against Amazon may well be a sign of the EU regulatory regime on the horizon for digital gatekeepers and the developing area of collective proceedings in the U.K., says David Greene at Edwin Coe.
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Link Ruling Shows FCA's Wide Change-In-Control Powers
The Financial Conduct Authority's recent decision regarding the proposed acquisition of Link Fund Solutions is a reminder that the regulator has significant powers to attach conditions to its approvals and the advent of the Financial Services and Markets Bill could lead to the widening of those powers, say Charlotte Hill and Daniel Hirschfield at Taylor Wessing.
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Understanding The EU's New Foreign Subsidies Regulation
The European Parliament’s newly adopted Foreign Subsidies Regulation extends already wide-ranging European Union state aid powers and adds new layers of deal conditionality, so companies will need to carefully consider how the regulation may affect their EU-bound activities, say Peter Camesasca and Sophie Bertin at Covington.
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Hard Insurance Market Will Influence Legal Industry, Economy
As the cost of claims starts to outstrip the value of premiums, insurers are denying more claims and considering scaling back coverage, leading to an influx of legal work and potential holes in the market, says Bruce Hepburn at Mactavish.
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Digital Nomads: Key Considerations For Global Businesses
As employers and employees embrace remote, location-independent work arrangements enabled by technology, they must be mindful of the employment law and tax consequences such arrangements may trigger, say Hannah Wilkins and Audrey Elliott at Eversheds Sutherland.
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Navigating Newly Expanded English Jurisdictional Gateways
With a recent significant change, the English courts' territorial jurisdiction is now primarily controlled by the question of whether England is the proper place to bring the claim, so parties to cross-border disputes seeking to resist the jurisdiction of the English courts should focus their arguments on this battleground, say Antony Corsi and Gill Davy at Norton Rose.