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Financial Services UK
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March 18, 2024
Prison Sentence Persuades Ex-Solicitor To Pay FCA's Order
The Financial Conduct Authority said Friday that money launderer and ex-solicitor Dale Walker has paid a final sum of £33,500 ($42,600) required under a confiscation order, persuaded by a 62-day prison sentence for failure to pay.
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March 18, 2024
Ex-LC&F Chief's Legal Team Seeks Payment Upfront For Trial
The £237 million ($300 million) London Capital & Finance investment trial was adjourned on Monday as the company chief's former legal team refused to come back unless they were paid upfront.
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March 18, 2024
Hayes Laments Judge's 'Catastrophic' SFO Interview Remarks
A former derivatives trader said Monday that, although he had admitted to dishonestly submitting figures for a key benchmark interest rate, it was unhelpful, prejudicial and ultimately "catastrophic" that the judge presiding over his trial told jurors that his conduct was misleading.
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March 18, 2024
WTW To Launch 'Game-Changing' Climate Finance Solution
Insurance broker WTW said Monday it is working to launch an insurance facility that it hopes will remove risks associated with loans to private companies, a move to protect them from threats linked to climate change.
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March 18, 2024
FCA Levies £5.95M Fine In Fake Dividend Tax Reclaim Case
The Financial Conduct Authority said Monday it had decided to fine the former chief executive of Indigo Global Partners Ltd. £5.95 million ($7.57 million) and ban him from the industry for participating in a Danish tax scam that falsely reclaimed dividend taxes on shares.
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March 18, 2024
PA Unfairly Pushed To Quit Over Underground COVID Fears
A trader unfairly forced his personal assistant to quit after demanding that she continue to work at his house despite her concerns about catching COVID-19 on the London Underground, an appeals tribunal has ruled.
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March 18, 2024
Serving Claims To HMRC By Email Made Permanent
Claimants pursuing legal action against the U.K. tax authority in England and Wales will continue to be able to serve documents by email, HM Revenue and Customs said Monday, making the process it introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic permanent.
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March 18, 2024
SFO's Ephgrave Targets Fraud In Push To Kick Down Doors
The Serious Fraud Office's fifth new investigation in the five months since Nick Ephgrave took the helm shows the watchdog has focused on domestic fraud cases and delivered on the director's pledge to be bolder, lawyers say.
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March 18, 2024
Watchdogs Join Forces To Ramp Up Fight On Debt Collection
The Financial Conduct Authority said on Monday it is launching a joint effort with three other watchdogs to further scrutinize debt collection practices, ensuring that companies fairly treat consumers who are feeling the pinch from the cost-of-living crisis.
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March 15, 2024
Ex-Autonomy CEO To Face Jury As HP Fraud Trial Boots Up
Former Autonomy CEO Michael Lynch's 2011 sale of the tech company he founded to HP for about $11.7 billion earned him around $804 million and acclaim in tech circles, but the British executive now faces up to 20 years in prison on federal fraud charges that he inflated revenue figures in a monthslong criminal trial slated to kick off Monday in San Francisco.
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March 15, 2024
Emirati Banks Deny Misleading Court To Get $31M Order
Emirates NBD Bank PJSC has denied misleading the Dubai courts to secure court orders for 117 million AED ($31.8 million) to enforce loans it claims executives of a Kuwaiti opticians company owe.
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March 15, 2024
Investment Funds Fight For Disclosure In $1.2B Mining Row
Two Brazilian investment funds lost their bid Friday to force a mining company to hand over board documents ahead of a trial over a $1.2 billion deal that went south, with the judge agreeing with the mining firm that the documents are privileged.
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March 22, 2024
Pallas Partners Hires Litigation Pro From Linklaters In London
Pallas Partners LLP has recruited a litigation partner from Linklaters LLP to its London office in a boost to its offerings across commercial, finance and competition disputes, the boutique firm said Friday.
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March 15, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
The past week in London has seen Howard Kennedy face legal action by a London hotel chain, former racing boss Bernie Ecclestone and Formula One hit with a breach of contract claim by a Brazilian racecar driver, and a libel row between broadcaster Jeremy Vine and ex-footballer Joey Barton. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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March 15, 2024
US Acquittals Don't Upend UK Libor Convictions, SFO Says
The acquittals in the U.S. of two former bankers previously convicted of rigging Libor doesn't undermine the legal rationale — upheld on several appeals — for prosecuting traders in English courts, counsel for the Serious Fraud Office said Friday.
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March 15, 2024
FCA To Review How Firms Treat Vulnerable Customers
Britain's finance watchdog said on Friday that it will examine whether U.K. firms are treating vulnerable and elderly customers fairly.
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March 15, 2024
Debenhams Pension Deal Eases Superfund Fears, LCP Says
The step by Clara-Pensions to take on all 10,400 members of the retirement savings plan of collapsed retailer Debenhams in the U.K.'s second-ever superfund deal will ease concerns around transactions in the nascent market, a consultancy has said.
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March 15, 2024
Fintech Co. R8 Capital Extends £50M Redwood Bank Deal
Struggling fintech company R8 Capital said Friday that it now is likely to complete the approximately £50 million ($63.7 million) acquisition of the parent company of specialist business lender Redwood Bank in August to "accommodate certain aspects of the transaction."
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March 15, 2024
Scottish Mortgage Plans £1B In Buybacks Over 2 Years
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust said Friday it is planning to spend at least £1 billion ($1.3 billion) over the next two years to reward shareholders after a sharp rise in cash flow from its portfolio companies.
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March 15, 2024
Pension Watchdog Says Poor-Value Plan Initiative Is Working
The U.K.'s retirement savings watchdog said that its fight against poor-value pension schemes is working and that plans are choosing to wind up following government regulations introduced to drive improvements for members.
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March 15, 2024
One-Day US Settlement Will Jeopardize Global FX Market
European asset managers have warned central banks and regulators that the planned U.S. move in May to settle foreign exchange trades more quickly will make billions of dollars in daily settlements unsafe, putting the global market at risk.
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March 22, 2024
Charles Russell Speechlys Hires Ex-Burges Salmon Funds Pro
Charles Russell Speechlys LLP has recruited a former head of private investment funds at Burges Salmon LLP in a bid to build out its profile in the market.
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March 14, 2024
Lehman Brothers Can't Undo Trial Loss Over Crisis-Era CDS
A New York appeals court on Thursday affirmed a bench trial loss Lehman Brothers' bankrupt European unit suffered last year in a suit attempting to claw back nearly half a billion dollars from Assured Guaranty over losses on credit default swaps tied to the 2008 financial crisis.
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March 14, 2024
UK Top Court Wrongly Enforced $356M Award Against Romania
Britain violated European Union law when the U.K. Supreme Court ruled in 2020 that two Swedish food investors could resume their efforts to enforce a $356 million arbitral award against Romania, despite findings within the EU that the award is illegal, the bloc's highest court found on Thursday.
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March 14, 2024
Barclays Beats Race Bias Claims From Cameroonian Ex-VPs
Barclays did not discriminate against three of its former vice presidents based on their ethnicity or Cameroonian nationality, but two of the bankers proved it mishandled their performance reviews in light of disabilities they had, a tribunal has ruled.
Expert Analysis
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Why Int'l Investors Should Keep An Eye On German M&A Regs
While German reform proposals will digitize corporate law formalities that have long been immune to change, international limitations remain, particularly for countries outside the European Union, as Germany moves to tighten regulatory hurdles to control inbound investment, say Marcus Geiss and Sonja Ruttmann at Gibson Dunn.
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How B2B Data Sharing Could Unlock Untapped Value
B2B data sharing offers organizations an opportunity to extract greater value from an existing asset, and although it is essential to consider the legal and regulatory framework and maintain a sound governance structure, with strong support businesses that share data are likely to grow more than those that do not, say Jocelyn Paulley and Helen Davenport at Gowling WLG.
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Why Coordinated UK Crypto Regulation Is Needed
The slew of recently published crypto-sector consultations and reports differ in their treatment of the currency, so the industry must coordinate to establish regulations that can weather the proliferation of fraud while supporting the U.K.'s race to become a world leader in digital assets, says Nicola McKinney at Quillon Law.
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5 Code Of Ethics Recommendations For FTSE 350 Companies
In light of the U.K. Institute of Business Ethics' recent report on the FTSE 350, companies should regularly update their code of ethics in order to emphasize to employees and business partners the importance they place on following good practice, say attorneys at Norton Rose.
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Examining The Effects Of Increased Construction Insolvency
With a significant rise in construction firm insolvencies, proactive monitoring of key counterparties is paramount, and if early warning signs such as failure to pay suppliers or a turnover in key management are triggered, parties should take steps to minimize exposure and potential losses, say lawyers at Reynolds Porter.
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What TPR's Guidance On DEI Means For Pensions Industry
The Pension Regulator is one of the first regulators to issue guidance on equality, diversity and inclusion, and employers and trustees should incorporate its advice by developing policies and monitoring progress to ensure that improvements are made regularly, say lawyers at Linklaters.
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The Many Challenges Of Post-Brexit Regulatory Divergence
As the regulatory effects of the U.K.'s departure from the EU emerge and the geopolitical landscape continues to evolve, firms must monitor compliance with fast-changing trade sanctions and the foreign investment screening regime that continues to add cost and complexity to the cross-border acquisitions market, say lawyers at Shepherd & Wedderburn.
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Economic Issues To Watch In The Libor Transition
With the London Interbank Offered Rate officially retiring June 30, market participants and their counsel should consider how the economic questions presented by outstanding contracts and the pros and cons of different alternative reference rates may lead to litigation around Libor cessation, say analysts at The Brattle Group.
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Reserved Investor Fund Would Plug Gap In UK Finance Market
The reserved investor fund recently proposed by HM Treasury has the potential to be a welcome tax-efficient addition to the U.K.’s canon of products for real estate investments, with attractive features for companies and, in particular, large asset managers, say lawyers at Herbert Smith.
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What Firms Need To Know About The FCA Consumer Duty
The Financial Conduct Authority's new consumer duty, in force from July 31, presents an opportunity for manufacturers and distributors of financial services to understand the importance of fair value for consumers, and the regulator will be taking a close interest in this, say Julie Patient, Mark Aengenheister and Virginia Montgomery at Hogan Lovells.
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Examining The Growing Strength Of FRC Enforcement Actions
As the U.K. Financial Reporting Council prepares to broaden its powers and transition into the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority in 2024, it is already demonstrating an increased appetite for enforcement, with greater expectations placed on auditors, say Kathleen Harris, Sean Curran and Melissa Dames at Arnold & Porter.
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UK Case Shows Risks Of Taking Shortcuts In Fund Payments
While the High Court recently reversed a decision in Floreat Investment Management v. Churchill, finding that investors routing funds into their own accounts was not dishonest, the case serves as a cautionary tale on the dangers of directing investment funds other than as contractually provided, say lawyers at Dechert.
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Growing EU Scrutiny Increases Hurdles For Foreign Investors
The application of the EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation from July will bring further oversight to many large deals, and together with bolt-on strategies, foreign investment regulation and antitrust enforcement, financial sponsors will need to start planning for compliance to avoid potential delays, say Anna Mitchell and Neil Hoolihan at Linklaters.
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How Ambitious New EU Directive Seeks To Fight Corruption
If enacted, the European Union’s recently proposed directive to combat corruption, with its substantive rules, specialized bodies and aim of raising public awareness, would form another milestone in the long-term creation of a genuine European criminal law system, say Katharina Humphrey and Andreas Dürr at Gibson Dunn.
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How The FCA Is Using Its New Powers To Make Changes
The recent sentence of the former London Capital CEO is the latest development in the firm's scandal that prompted a damning report on the Financial Conduct Authority's regulatory conduct, leading the regulator to much soul-searching and a continuing clamp down on firms that misuse their approvals, says Ben Rees at Keller Postman.