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Financial Services UK
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June 30, 2025
Finance Gender Gap Progress Too Slow, Gov't Report Warns
A body set up by HM Treasury to increase the representation of women at senior levels in finance warned Monday that improving gender parity in the sector remains too slow and urged companies to "accelerate" their efforts.
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June 30, 2025
Ex-Stobart Boss Loses Latest Conspiracy Case Over Sacking
Stobart Group's former chief executive has lost his latest battle to prove an alleged conspiracy to remove him as chair of the logistics company, as a judge ruled that his case against some of its shareholders was an unlawful attempt to re-open earlier claims.
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June 30, 2025
EU Eyes Adding ESG Risk In Stress Tests For Banks, Insurers
Three European Union finance watchdogs have proposed rules to ensure that national banking and insurance regulators integrate environmental, social and governance risks into supervisory stress-testing in a more harmonized way.
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June 30, 2025
FCA's New Enforcement Regime Threatens Firms, Individuals
The Financial Conduct Authority could damage the reputations of businesses and individuals under investigation in cases that it publicizes anonymously as an unintended consequence of a new enforcement policy, lawyers have warned.
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June 30, 2025
CPS Drops Bribery Case Against Oil Entrepreneur Over Errors
Prosecutors have dropped bribery charges against a Nigerian-born U.S. oil entrepreneur accused of making illegal payments to a banker, admitting at a court hearing in London on Monday to substantial errors in disclosing evidence.
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June 29, 2025
FCA Presents Targeted Support Rules For Finance Firms
The Financial Conduct Authority said Monday it has set out a fast-track plan to allow financial services firms to provide a new type of "targeted support" to unadvised customers about pensions and investments.
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June 27, 2025
Senior MPs Urge Reform Of Complex Lifetime ISA Rules
Senior MPs warned Monday that the dual-purpose and inflexible rules of Lifetime ISAs might be pushing consumers toward less suitable financial products and risking their cash reserves.
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June 27, 2025
UK Tribunal Says Visa, Mastercard Fees Infringe Antitrust Law
A U.K. tribunal issued a judgment Friday siding with merchants seeking damages from Visa and Mastercard for claims they were charged excessively high transaction fees, finding the interchange fees merchants pay to banks violate competition law.
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June 27, 2025
How Staley's Legal Bid To Save His Reputation Backfired
Former Barclays boss James "Jes" Staley's bid to salvage his reputation has backfired in the face of a London tribunal's findings he "lacked credibility" due to the "overwhelming" evidence of his close relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
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June 27, 2025
FCA Launches Investigation Into John Wood Group
The U.K.'s financial watchdog said Friday that it has opened a probe into the Scottish multinational engineering consultancy John Wood Group PLC after the company revealed the probe in a statement to markets.
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June 27, 2025
Law Firm Fails To Ax Vanquis Bank's £4.5M Complaints Case
A London judge has refused to throw out Vanquis Bank's £4.5 million ($6.1 million) claim against a law firm it alleges inundated it with thousands of meritless complaints over loans, ruling that although the facts underpinning the claim were "novel," it was based on "well-established" principles.
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June 27, 2025
EU Watchdog Floats Allowing Funds Some Riskier Investing
The European Union's market watchdog has recommended that the European Commission should reform the rule book governing the bloc's retail investors, calling for a more relaxed stance on alternative assets investments and improved regulatory harmonization across member states.
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June 27, 2025
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen the British Basketball Federation sued by members of the men's professional basketball league for alleged competition breaches, songwriter Coco Star file an intellectual property claim against Universal Music Publishing, and the Solicitors Regulation Authority file a claim against the Post Office amid ongoing investigations into law firms linked to the Horizon IT Scandal. Here, À¶Ý®ÊÓÆµ looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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June 27, 2025
Ex-NASA Scientist Pleads Guilty To £1M Investment Fraud
A former NASA scientist has admitted a £1 million ($1.4 million) fraud that "fleeced unwitting investors" while he operated an investment business without authorization, the Financial Conduct Authority said on Friday.
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June 27, 2025
Aon Denies Ex-Exec's $1.3M Bonus Bid Over Early Exit
Aon has rejected its former insurance consulting chief's $1.3 million claim for bonus and stock options, arguing that his employment contract ended before the payout date.
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June 27, 2025
Preventing Financial Crisis Best Thing For Growth, BoE Says
The government's growth agenda should not equate to throwing out all safeguards, because preventing a major financial crash is vital for ensuring Britain is competitive, a senior member of the Bank of England said Friday.
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June 27, 2025
HMRC Beats Dentist's Appeal Over Tax Avoidance Scheme
A dental practice has failed to overturn a finding that it engaged in tax avoidance by making loan payments to its owner through a trust, after an appeals court Friday found that the payments fall to be taxed as income.
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June 27, 2025
FCA Flags Poor Risk Management Practices At Payment Firms
The Financial Conduct Authority has revealed that payment services companies displayed inadequate risk management in every case it examined in a multi-company review.
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July 03, 2025
Dechert Hires PE Pro In London From Wealth Fund GIC
Dechert said on Thursday it has recruited a new partner from Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC, adding global private capital expertise to its corporate and securities practice in London.
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June 26, 2025
Law Firm Settles Crypto Fraud Victim's Negligence Claim
A boutique investment fraud law firm and a cryptocurrency fraud victim have inked a settlement to end a claim accusing the firm of providing negligent advice to recover £500,000 ($687,600) in stolen funds.
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June 26, 2025
Ex-Consultant Wants £1.4M Over Botched Insurance Cover
A former consultant has sued a wealth management and benefits consultancy for £1.4 million ($1.9 million) for allegedly failing to arrange adequate insurance cover, which she claims left her short of money during serious illness and surgery. Â
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June 26, 2025
Restructuring Filings Surge Amid AI, Geopolitical Strains
The first half of 2025 has seen a surge in companies filing for restructuring plans amid increasing financial distress caused by geopolitical troubles and the advent of AI, according to a LexisNexis report published Thursday on the fifth anniversary of the introduction of the plans.
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June 26, 2025
Qatar National Bank Beats £89M Claim Over Share Deal
A Qatari bank Thursday beat a Kuwaiti businessman's £89.4 million ($122.8 million) English claim over alleged breaches of a complex financing agreement, after a judge noted his reliance on "hallucinatory" references to cases that didn't exist through the inappropriate use of AI.
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June 26, 2025
BoE Launches Forum For Financial Firms And Policy Body
The Bank of England said Thursday it has set up a forum for senior individuals in large financial services firms to liaise with the central bank's Monetary Policy Committee, which sets interest rates.
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June 26, 2025
EU Strikes 'Milestone' Deal To Reform Bank Failure Rules
The European Union has agreed to radically reform the rule book for managing failures of small and midsized banks in the bloc by improving lenders' access to industry-funded safety nets.
Expert Analysis
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The Outlook For UK Restructuring Plans At Home And Abroad
The U.K. continues to be a center for large-cap, cross-border restructurings, though its competitive edge over the EU in this regard may narrow, while small and medium-sized enterprises are already likely to avoid costly formal processes by reaching out to their secured lenders for restructuring solutions, say Paul Keddie and Timothy Bromley-White at Macfarlanes.
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Foreign Assets Ruling Suggests New Tax Avoidance Approach
The U.K. Supreme Court's recent ruling in His Majesty's Revenue & Customs v. Fisher, which found that the scope of the transfer of foreign assets is narrow, highlights that the days of rampant tax avoidance have been left behind, and that the need for wide-ranging and uncertain tax legislation is lessening, says James Austen at Collyer Bristow.
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Lessons To Be Learned From 2023's Bank Failures
This year’s banking collapses, coupled with interest rate rises, inflation and geopolitical instability have highlighted the need for more robust governance, and banks and regulators have learned that they must adequately monitor and control liquidity risk to protect against another financial crisis, say Juliette Mills and Alix Prentice at Cadwalader.
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An Overview Of European Private Investments in Public Equity
Although still fairly rare, private investments in public equity may continue to be an attractive option for some European issuers seeking to secure equity financing, and advisers planning such an investment should consider the various local options, requirements and norms, say lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell.
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Cos. Must Monitor Sanctions Regime As Law Remains Unclear
While recent U.K. government guidance and an English High Court's decision in Litasco v. Der Mond Oil, finding that a company is sanctioned when a designated individual is exercising control over it, both address sanctions control issues, disarray in the law remains, highlighting that practitioners should keep reviewing their exposure to the sanctions regime, say lawyers at K&L Gates.
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Unpacking The UK's Proposals To Regulate Crypto-Assets
Recent proposals for crypto-asset regulation in the U.K. demonstrate support for crypto's potential, but there is concern around the authorization process for organizations undertaking crypto-asset activities, and new regulations will require a more detailed assessment of firms' compliance not previously addressed, say Jessica Lee and Menelaos Karampetsos at Brown Rudnick.
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The Top 7 Global ESG Litigation Trends In 2023
To date, ESG litigation across the world can largely be divided into seven forms, but these patterns will continue developing, including a rise in cases against private and state actors, a more complex regulatory environment affecting multinational companies, and an increase in nongovernmental organization activity, say Sophie Lamb and Aleksandra Dulska at Latham.
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UK Takeover Code Changes: Key Points For Bidders, Targets
Newly effective amendments to Rule 21 of the U.K. Takeover Code, which remove legal and administrative constraints on a target operating its business in the ordinary way during an offer, will add clarity for targets and bidders, and are likely to be welcomed by both, say lawyers at Davis Polk.
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Russia Ruling Shows UK's Robust Jurisdiction Approach
An English High Court's recent decision to grant an anti-suit injunction in the Russia-related dispute Renaissance Securities v. Chlodwig Enterprises clearly illustrates that obtaining an injunction will likely be more straightforward when the seat is in England compared to when it is abroad, say lawyers at Linklaters.
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How New Loan Origination Regime Will Affect Fund Managers
Although the recent publication of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive II represents more of an evolution than a revolution, the leverage limitations applicable to loan-originating funds are likely to present practical challenges for European credit fund managers, say attorneys at Fried Frank.
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How EU Sustainability Directive Will Improve Co. Reporting
The need for organizations to make nonfinancial disclosures under the recently adopted EU Sustainability Reporting Standards will significantly change workforce and human rights reporting, and with the objective of fostering transparency, should bring about an increased focus on risks, policies and action plans, say Philip Spyropoulos and Thomas Player at Eversheds Sutherland.
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PPI Ruling Spells Trouble For Financial Services Firms
The Supreme Court's recent decision in Canada Square v. Potter, which found that the claimant's missold payment protection insurance claim was not time-barred, is bad news for affected financial services firms, as there is now certainty over the law on the postponement of limitation periods, rendering hidden commission claims viable, say Ian Skinner and Chris Webber at Squire Patton.
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What Lawyers Can Learn From FDI Screening Report Findings
The recent European Commission report on the screening of foreign direct investments into the EU reveals how member states need to balance national security concerns with openness, and with more cross-border transactions subject to screening, lawyers must be alert to jurisdictional variances, says Jonathon Gunn at Faegre Drinker.
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UK Review May Lead To Lower Investment Screening Burden
The government’s current review of national security investment screening rules aims to refine the scope of mandatory notifications required for unproblematic deals, and is likely to result in much-needed modifications to minimize the administrative burden on businesses and investors, say lawyers at Simpson Thacher.
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Economic Crime Act Exposure: What Companies Can Expect
The intention of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act is to make it easier to attribute criminal liability to companies if a senior manager has committed an offense, but the impact on corporate criminal convictions depends on who qualifies as a senior manager and the evidential challenges in showing it, say Hayley Ichilcik and Julius Handler at MoFo.