Financial Services UK

  • September 04, 2025

    UK's AI Sector Hits Record £2.9B Investment In 2024

    Investors plugged a record £2.9 billion ($3.9 billion) into British artificial intelligence companies in 2024, the government has said, as it set out plans to help grow the U.K.'s AI assurance market.

  • September 04, 2025

    UK Set To Close Loopholes In Money Laundering Rules

    HM Treasury has released detailed draft changes to the anti-money laundering regime to close regulatory loopholes exploited by businesses in all sectors, including crypto-asset companies.

  • September 04, 2025

    Shareholders Back Apax Partners' €916M Apax Global Deal

    Investment company Apax Global Alpha Ltd. said Thursday that its shareholders have thrown their weight behind a €916.5 million ($1.1 billion) takeover deal put forward by Apax Partners LLP, a private equity firm that it works with.

  • September 03, 2025

    Eversheds Adds New Partners From Latham And A&O

    Eversheds Sutherland said Wednesday that it has hired three new partners from A&O Shearman, Latham and the former owner of discount retailer Poundland, strengthening its corporate and commercial practices.

  • September 03, 2025

    4 Firms Steer $2.7B Sale Of Aon's NFP Wealth Biz

    Aon said Wednesday it has agreed to sell various business units that make up the majority of NFP's wealth management operations to private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners in a transaction worth $2.7 billion, with Skadden, Dentons, Paul Weiss and Kirkland representing the parties.

  • September 03, 2025

    Charity Regulator Probes Alleged Funds Misuse At Food Bank

    The U.K.'s charity regulator said on Wednesday that it has launched an inquiry into a food bank in Merseyside over allegations of misuse of funds after a major donor stopped donations.

  • September 03, 2025

    UK Autumn Budget Set For November, Reeves Confirms

    The U.K. government will announce its autumn budget in November, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said Wednesday amid growing speculation that the government will raise taxes to cover the rising cost of borrowing.

  • September 03, 2025

    Investors Lose Bid For Pension Orders In AI Bike Fraud Case

    Investors seeking to enforce a fraud judgment against the founders of an AI-driven exercise bike company suffered a setback Wednesday, when a London judge declined to finalize interim debt orders against the founders' pensions.

  • September 03, 2025

    EU Trade Body Wants Relaxed Bank Rules For Consolidation

     A trade body for European financial institutions has called for widespread reform of rules on capital, ring-fencing and crisis resolution for banks, steps it claims would boost competitiveness and industry consolidation.

  • September 03, 2025

    Council Loses Bid To Recover £20M Pension Investment Loss

    An English council on Wednesday lost its bid to wind up a failed Luxembourg-based fund to recover a £20 million ($27 million) pension investment, with a London appeals court ruling the entity was not a company for the purposes of insolvency legislation.

  • September 03, 2025

    Insurer Aviva Halts £60M Of Fraudulent Insurance Claims

    Insurance giant Aviva said Wednesday it prevented over £60 million ($80.6 million) worth of fraudulent claims in the first six months of the year.

  • September 03, 2025

    Aegon Nets €700M From Dutch Insurer Share Sale

    Global financial services company Aegon said on Wednesday that it has lowered its stake in Dutch insurer ASR Nederland NV by selling its shares and has raised €700 million ($815 million) in the process.

  • September 03, 2025

    Revolut Fined In Australia For Late AML Reports

    Australia has fined the local subsidiary of Revolut 187,800 Australian dollars ($123,000) after the British financial technology company breached the country's anti-money laundering rules when it submitted late reports.

  • September 02, 2025

    Davis Polk-Led Klarna Seeks $1.3B In Revived IPO Plans

    Swedish financial technology startup Klarna, advised by Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, announced Tuesday the buy-now, pay-later business is resuming its initial public offering plans, months after those plans were paused amid backlash to U.S. President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs announcement in April, saying the company is looking to raise up to $1.27 billion.

  • September 02, 2025

    Hotel Liquidators Claim Debtor Hid Shares To Evade Creditors

    The liquidators of a hotel company are asking the High Court to find that property mogul Andrew Ruhan has concocted a "secret relationship" with a junior employee to put his assets out of reach of creditors.

  • September 02, 2025

    Goldman Seeks To Limit Ex-Manager's Sex Bias Award Payout

    Goldman Sachs sought on Tuesday to reduce a former compliance manager's payout after it unfairly dismissed him while he was on paternity leave, arguing at a London employment tribunal that it might have dismissed him in any event. 

  • September 02, 2025

    FCA Calls For Legal Clarity If Trustees Refuse Gov't Mandate

    The Financial Conduct Authority warned a parliamentary committee Tuesday that the government's Pensions Schemes Bill requires secondary legislation to clarify how trustees can safely refuse any government direction on how to invest funds in the private economy.

  • September 02, 2025

    UK Gov't To Fix Fallout From Virgin Media Pensions Ruling

    The government has floated new rules for pension funds that experts say could offer a way out of the legal limbo they've faced since a landmark court judgment more than a year ago.

  • September 02, 2025

    Clifford Chance-Led Online Marketplace Plans Swiss IPO

    Online marketplace owner Swiss Marketplace Group AG said on Tuesday that it is planning to float its existing shares on the SIX stock exchange of Switzerland in an initial public offering.

  • September 02, 2025

    Textor Cites Missing Docs To Fight $93M Share Buyout Claim

    The owner of a portfolio of professional football clubs told a London court he wasn't obliged to pay $93.6 million for an investment vehicle's stake in his company, arguing that it failed to provide documents needed for the transaction.

  • September 02, 2025

    Payments Co.'s NFT Patent Denied Over 'Flawed' Fraud Claim

    U.S. payments company Blackhawk Network Inc. has been denied a U.K. patent for a method of buying non-fungible tokens using a scannable code, after officials found that the system does not prevent fraud as the business had claimed.

  • September 02, 2025

    Slaughter And May Guides Shawbrook On Acquisition Deal

    Retail bank Shawbrook Group PLC said on Tuesday that it will acquire ThinCats, a lender to small and midsized companies, to help to deliver "a highly attractive return on invested capital."

  • September 02, 2025

    Monte Dei Paschi Sweetens Mediobanca Bid To €13.5B

    Monte dei Paschi said Tuesday that it has increased its takeover offer for rival Italian lender Mediobanca with a €750 million ($872 million) cash sweetener in an attempt to win shareholders' approval, as the proposed deal reaches a value of €13.5 billion.

  • September 02, 2025

    Wealth Manager Rathbones Launches 1st Share Buyback

    Rathbones Group PLC rolled out its first stock repurchase program, which will be worth as much as £50 million ($67 million), on Tuesday after it recently reported a boost in its cash reserves.

  • September 01, 2025

    Top Commercial Dispute Rulings Of 2025: Midyear Report

    England's courts have dealt in the first half of 2025 with a multibillion-dollar legal dispute with insurers over planes stuck in Russia, slashed the exposure faced by banks over motor finance claims and set out how the proceeds from a landmark class action against Mastercard should be distributed.

Expert Analysis

  • New UK Short Selling Rules Diverge From EU Regs

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    Although forthcoming changes to the U.K.’s short selling regulatory regime represent a welcome relaxation of restrictions and simplification of reporting processes, participants active in both the U.K. and EU markets will need to ensure compliance with two quite different sets of rules, says Ezra Zahabi at Akin.

  • What Latest FCA Portfolio Letter Means For Payments Firms

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    “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

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    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.

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