Expert Analysis

• FCA's Broad Proposals Aim To Protect Customer Funds

  

  The Financial Conduct Authority’s proposed changes to payments firms’ safeguarding requirements, with enhanced recordkeeping and fund segregation, seek to bolster existing regulatory provisions, but by introducing a statutory trust concept to cover customers’ assets, represent a set of onerous rules, says Matt Hancock at Greenberg Traurig.

• Complying With Growing EU Supply Chain Mandates

  

  A significant volume of recent European Union legislative developments demonstrate a focus on supply chain transparency, so organizations must remain vigilant about potential human rights and environmental abuses in their supply chain and make a plan to mitigate compliance risks, say lawyers at Weil.

• Takeaways From Upcoming Payment Fraud Delay Legislation

  

  Lawyers at Hogan Lovells discuss what to know about new legislation that will allow payment service providers to delay payments when third-party fraud is suspected, and share pointers for providers to consider ahead of the Oct. 30 effective date.

• What New EU Packaging Regulation Will Mean For Companies

  

  The forthcoming Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation aims to regulate the entire life cycle of products from design to end-of-life waste, and will present particularly challenging deadlines for organizations, especially regarding recyclability and substances of concern, say Marcus Navin-Jones and Ward Overlaet at Crowell & Moring.

• Modernizing UK Trade Settlement Standard: The Road Ahead

  

  Andrew Tsang and Tom Bacon at BCLP consider the rationale and challenges of a potential U.K. trade settlement acceleration, part of an initiative to modernize the financial market infrastructure, and suggest that incorporating distributed ledger technology as a synchronized recording system would facilitate the move.

• ICO Reprimand Highlights Importance Of Cookie Use Consent

  

  The Information Commissioner's Office's recent reprimand of Bonne Terre's unlawful use of online advertising cookies confirms that companies using third-party tracking technologies are considered data controllers responsible for ensuring compliance, say Nessa Khandaker and Lynn Parker Dupree at Finnegan.

• Analyzing The Implications Of 1st FCA Crypto ATM Crackdown

  

  The Financial Conduct Authority’s recent criminal prosecution of Olumide Osunkoya, its first enforcement action against a crypto-asset trading firm's owner, is an unambiguous sign of the regulator’s commitment to actively pursue transgressors, but may be a hindrance to the U.K. crypto industry, says Asim Arshad at Lawrence Stephens.

• What EU Antitrust Guidelines Will Mean For Dominant Cos.

  

  The European Commission’s recent draft antitrust guidelines will steer courts' enforcement powers, increasing the risk for dominant firms engaging in exclusive dealing without any apparent basis to shift the burden of proof to those companies, say lawyers at Latham.

• Draft Merger Control Guidance Allows CMA To Cast Wide Net

  

  The Competition and Markets Authority's recent draft merger control guidance, reflecting the regulator's strengthened powers under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Act, introduces extensive change and potential procedural improvements, specifically concerning reviews of private equity firms, say lawyers at Travers Smith.

• Key Points From Cayman's Beneficial Ownership Regime

  

  While recent expansion of the Cayman Islands Beneficial Ownership Act's scope means it now encompasses many entities with previously minimal obligations, the changes ensure a welcome level playing field with workable alternative routes to compliance, says Lucy Frew at Walkers Global.

• HMRC Transfer Pricing Guide A Vital Resource For Businesses

  

  HM Revenue & Customs' recent guidelines on common transfer pricing compliance risks should be required reading for affected businesses in indicating HMRC's expected benchmark for documents and policies, say Tomoko Ikawa and Kapisha Vyas at Simmons & Simmons.

• How UK Digital Regulation Under Labour May Differ From EU

  

  Although details on the Labour government's data and cyber resilience reforms are currently limited, there are indications that proposed legislation and a lack of AI-specific legislation signal divergence from the European Union's approach, say lawyers at Deloitte.

• Insights From FRC's Report On Good Corporate Governance

  

  Although the Financial Reporting Council’s recent report on private companies opting to follow the Wates principles has identified improvements, it is important for organizations to provide transparent disclosures and avoid boilerplate, tickbox filings, says Tessa Hastie at BCLP.

• What To Know About The UK Overseas Funds Regime

  

  The U.K.’s overseas funds regime is now open for applications, providing a simplified way of offering a foreign fund to U.K. retail investors, and the Financial Conduct Authority's clear policy statement on implementation should ease the transition process from the existing scheme, say lawyers at Dechert.

• 5 Cyber Risk Tips For Lawyers Contracting Cloud Services

  

  With the U.K. government's recent announcement of a forthcoming cybersecurity bill, and the European Union's imminent deadline to transpose the second Network and Information Systems Directive into national law, it is important for in-house lawyers to be alive to potential risks when contracting for cloud services, say lawyers at Addleshaw Goddard.