Financial Services UK

What To Expect From The Competition Appeal Tribunal In 2026

With a new president at the helm, potential government reform and a crowded trial calendar, lawyers say the next 12 months will see a Competition Appeal Tribunal with a more disciplined judicial culture.

Sign outside office that deals with fraud with the UK coat of arms, affixed to a stone building.

SFO Faces Critical Year With Several Major Trials In 2026

The Serious Fraud Office spent a year largely outside the courtroom, 2026 is shaping up to be a blockbuster year for the white-collar enforcer, with four cases going to trial, involving 11 defendants charged with fraud and bribery.

Car Loans, AI, Crypto Top UK's 2026 Consumer Protection List

Financial regulators have entered the new year with a long list of unfinished business in consumer protection and other regulatory areas, ranging from targeted support and a major redress program to a first full U.K. regime for crypto-assets and a better steer on artificial intelligence.

The Top 10 UK Commercial Litigation Cases To Watch In 2026

Millions of pounds will be at stake when the U.K. Supreme Court hears the battle between businesses forced to close during the COVID-19 pandemic and their insurers over furlough deductions.

January 02, 2026
FCA Ends 150 Investigations And Sharpens Enforcement

The Financial Conduct Authority revealed Friday that it has closed more than 150 of its investigations in the past three years as it moves toward fewer and more focused probes.
January 02, 2026
FCA Launches Probe Into Claims Manager Over Sales Tactics

The financial watchdog on Friday opened an investigation into a claims manager over concerns about the company's sales and marketing tactics as part of the wave of litigation over motor finance commission payments.
January 02, 2026
What To Expect From Financial Crime Regulation In 2026

Plans by the government to reform the criminal justice system by scrapping jury trials in cases of complex fraud headline a series of regulatory and legislative changes on the cards for 2026 in cases of economic crime.
January 02, 2026
BDO Hit With £80M Claim Over Botched Building Firm Audit

A collapsed construction company has sued BDO for at least £80 million ($108 million), alleging that the accounting firm bungled the business' financial reporting and failed to detect £43 million in losses that led to its failure.
January 02, 2026
Pensions Bill To Reshape UK Retirement Sector In 2026

The U.K. pensions industry will be in a state of flux in 2026 because of the passage of a raft of reforms geared toward boosting the role of the sector in domestic investment.
January 02, 2026
BoE Instructs Firms To Report Profit Held In Top Capital

The Bank of England said Friday that financial institutions it regulates must inform it as soon as possible if they intend to include unconfirmed interim or year-end profit in their highest-quality core capital.
January 02, 2026
Investors Hope For 2026 Dealmaking Rebound After Budget

Advisers are cautiously optimistic about a revival in London's M&A and listings activity in 2026, fueled by private equity moving to offload holdings with depressed asset values after a sprinkling of positive news in the government's autumn Budget.
January 01, 2026
BigLaw Leaders Tackle Growth, AI, Remote Work In New Year

Rapid business growth, cultural changes caused by remote work and generative AI are creating challenges and opportunities for law firm leaders going into the New Year. Here, seven top firm leaders share what’s running through their minds as they lie awake at night.
January 01, 2026
UK Legal Sector Braces For M&A Surge, AI Boom In 2026

The year ahead is set to accelerate the transformation of the legal sector, with developments including a surge in mergers and acquisitions and artificial intelligence moving beyond hype.
December 23, 2025
Ex-Rosenblatt Firm Loses Appeal Over VC Co.'s £6M Legal Bill

A London court has held that Winros Partnership, formerly known as Rosenblatt Solicitors, can't force an investment company to pay its £6 million ($8 million) legal bill because the law firm chose to ignore a contractual provision designed to allow it to recover the money.
December 23, 2025
Dubai Bank, Developer Deny £260M Deal Sabotage Allegations

A property developer and a Dubai bank have hit back at a claim from a real estate business that alleges they undermined a £260 million ($351.2 million) refinancing deal, saying that there was no chance of the transaction going ahead.
December 23, 2025
Actuary Fined For Anti-Islam Tweets Wins Belief Protection

An actuary hit with a two-year ban and a fine of almost £23,000 ($31,000) has convinced an employment tribunal that his belief in traditional Islam being problematic and deserving of criticism constituted a protected belief under the Equality Act.
December 23, 2025
Crypto Thefts Rise Amid Threats Of Kidnapping, Theft

Criminals are increasingly using kidnapping, robbery and theft to obtain access to digital assets from crypto exchanges, brokers and individuals, making secure passwords irrelevant, a trade body warned Tuesday.
December 23, 2025
The Biggest FCA Enforcement Cases And Fines In 2025

A year after the FCA was criticized for delays, dropped cases and its use of publicity powers, it entered 2025 under pressure to show its enforcement regime had teeth.
December 23, 2025
Edinburgh Worldwide Tells Investors To Reject Saba Bid

British investment company Edinburgh Worldwide urged its shareholders on Tuesday to vote against a renewed takeover effort by U.S. hedge fund Saba Capital Management, saying the activist investor's proposals threaten the trust's strategy and its stakeholders' long-term interests.
December 23, 2025
Sauce Was Vital Ingredient In €9M Deal, Restaurateur Says

A French restaurant manager has denied lying about his work history in order to secure a €9.3 million ($11 million) investment from a private equity firm for a food chain venture, saying that the company had backed the deal for his "secret sauce" recipe.
December 23, 2025
UK Supreme Court Recalibrates Class Action Opt-Out Test

A decision by the U.K. Supreme Court to block a £2.7 billion ($3.6 billion) claim against major banks over foreign exchange-rigging has recalibrated the test for when a collective action should be brought through opt-out proceedings, lawyers say.
December 23, 2025
The Biggest UK Commercial Fraud Cases In 2025

Denmark's stinging defeat in a £1.4 billion ($1.9 billion) tax fraud claim and a U.K. Supreme Court ruling that widens the net for individuals who facilitate fraud are among the defining moments in the biggest commercial fraud cases of 2025.
December 22, 2025
Burges Salmon Denies Negligence In Fund Set-Up Dispute

Burges Salmon LLP has denied an investment banker's allegations it negligently led him into a "hopeless" case, telling a London court it advised the financier he was likely to lose his claim that he was excluded from the creation of an investment strategy.
December 22, 2025
Mortgage Adviser's Health Cover Appeal Barred By Settlement

A mortgage adviser has lost his case that a settlement with his employer to end health insurance and pension-related claims did not compromise a linked appeal, with an appeal tribunal concluding the settlement encompassed the entirety of his case.
December 22, 2025
Loopholes Hinder FCA Firm Checker's Ability To Fight Fraud

The Financial Conduct Authority is failing to stop financial fraud because criminals are finding ways round its limited actions and technologies, said lawyers, who are calling for government legislation to boost the watchdog's powers.
December 22, 2025
Aon Hits Out Over Gibraltar Insurer Collapse

Insurance services company Aon has pinned the blame for the fall of a Gibraltar insurer on the company's directors, shrugging off a negligence claim of more than £50 million ($67 million) over its actuarial work.
December 22, 2025
FCA Strips Regulatory Permissions From Pensions Adviser

The Financial Conduct Authority has slapped a pension adviser with a ban on carrying out regulated activity after a series of breaches, including a failure to pay off an arbitration award.
December 22, 2025
UK Recovers Just 28% Of Frozen Criminal Assets

Two flagship legal tools introduced to help Britain tackle kleptocracy are failing, Spotlight on Corruption has said, as the charity published a report on the flow of illicit money into the domestic economy.
December 19, 2025
FCA's AML Role May Overburden Barristers, Bar Council Says

The Bar Council has warned that making the Financial Conduct Authority the sole anti-money laundering watchdog for professional services firms could disproportionally hit barristers with more regulation and costs, calling on the government to tread carefully with any proposed increase in the financial regulator's powers.

Editor's Picks

5 Questions For Spencer West Partner Karl Foster

The Financial Conduct Authority's approach to enforcement and consumer protection has come up against government economic growth priorities and resistance from the sector to its proposals to "name and shame" companies early on during regulatory probes.
UK Draft Pay Fraud Rules Open Tricky Legal Liabilities

The government's new draft legislation, which will give banks longer to investigate suspicions of fraud before they send payments instructed by customers, will create a wave of new legal liabilities and lead to regulatory hurdles, according to lawyers.
FCA Fires Warning Shot Over City's Consumer Duty Failings

The Financial Conduct Authority has sent out a fresh warning to financial services companies highlighting how some of them are failing to comply with its Consumer Duty regime. But experts have told Law360 that the expectations are unclear.

Expert Analysis

FCA Enforcement Trends In 2025 And Expectations For 2026

The Financial Conduct Authority’s clear intention in 2025 to conduct fewer, faster investigations and reinforce transparency is likely to continue in 2026, with a dual-pronged approach of targeted enforcement and assertive supervision to fight crime, support growth and help consumers as its priorities, say lawyers at WilmerHale.
Judicial AI Guidance Update Shows Caution Still Prevails

The judiciary’s recently updated guidance on the use of artificial intelligence warns judges and tribunal members about misinformation and white text manipulation, providing a reminder that AI tools cannot replace direct engagement with evidence and reflecting a broader concern about their application when handling confidential material, say lawyers at Hogan Lovells.
Freezing Orders Maintain Their Impact 50 Years On

Freezing orders, created in Mareva v. International Bulk Carriers 50 years ago, are now a fundamental part of English and Welsh law and a significant weapon in the litigator's armory, considered indispensable by practitioners seeking to obtain enforceable judgments and interlocutory relief on behalf of their clients, say lawyers at Trowers and Hamlins.
EU Businesses Face Uncertainty Amid Sustainability Reforms

The European Commission’s sustainability omnibus, due to be approved this month, has brought a year of regulatory upheaval for European businesses, and although the long-awaited scaled-back obligations will provide clarity, a balance between not overburdening reporting companies and the need for data to make sustainable investments must be found, say lawyers at Peters & Peters.
How Russia Sanctions Trajectory Is Affecting UK Legal Sector

The proliferation of U.K. and European Union sanctions targeting Russia has led to a vast increase in legislative provisions, and lawyers advising affected businesses should expect a complex and evolving legal landscape for the foreseeable future, says Rob Dalling at Jenner & Block.
Tracking Crypto-Asset Tax Rules In 2025 And Beyond

The past year has seen an increasing amount of regulation in the crypto-asset space, with a range of novel and complex taxation challenges for regulators, and taxpayers can expect a marked increase in HM Revenue & Customs' compliance activity in the year ahead, says Liam McKay at RPC.
Navigating Legal Privilege Issues When Using AI

The recent explosion in artificial intelligence has led to prompts and AI outputs that may be susceptible to disclosure in proceedings, and it is important to apply familiar principles to assess whether legal privilege may apply to these interactions, say lawyers at HSF.
A Look At Factors Affecting Ombudsman Complaint Trends

Lawyers at Womble Bond provide an analysis of the Financial Ombudsman Service's complaint trends in 2025, highlighting the impact of changes within the FOS and external factors on the financial sector's redress system.
What To Know About FCA's Short Selling Regime Proposals

Although the Financial Conduct Authority’s recent proposals for changes to the U.K. short selling regime do not materially alter the rules, targeted reforms designed to reduce the administrative burden placed on position holders will be welcomed by market participants, say lawyers at McDermott.
How BoE Stablecoin Proposals May Reshape UK Payments

The Bank of England’s proposals for a sterling-denominated systemic stablecoin system amount to a substantial new regime, but it has a low-risk appetite for any change that would result in payment obligations migrating to a private stablecoin ledger and its tentativeness toward wholesale settlement is disappointing, say lawyers at Norton Rose.
Why EU's FDI Screening Proposals Require Careful Balance

The European Commission’s proposals to harmonize EU foreign direct investment screening regimes at the member state level require a trilogue between the commission, Parliament and council, which means political tensions need to be resolved in order to reach agreement on the five key reforms, say lawyers at Arnold & Porter.
OFSI Proposals Signal Greater Focus On Enforcement Activity

The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation’s proposed financial sanctions reforms, with risks of higher penalties and more stringent disclosure requirements for U.K. banks and companies, reflect the agency’s evolution into a more sophisticated and robust enforcement regulator, says Irene Polieri at Gibson Dunn.
How Restructuring Reforms Will Streamline Insolvency Plans

The recently published revised practice statement on schemes of arrangement and restructuring plans promises midmarket businesses efficiency without diluting safeguards, positioning schemes as inclusive tools rather than elite options, say lawyers at Addleshaw Goddard.
How 2nd Circ. Decision Extends CFTC's Extraterritorial Reach

The Second Circuit recently concluded in U.S. v. Phillips that the Commodity Exchange Act extends to entirely foreign conduct if a victim of the conduct is based in the U.S., suggesting there is a heightened risk that foreign swap transactions will be susceptible to U.S. regulation when U.S. counterparties are involved, say attorneys at Skadden.
EBA Proposals Signal Overhaul Of EU 3rd-Party Risk Rules

The European Banking Authority’s plans to extend third-party risk controls to non-ICT services, which may be finalized by the end of the year, will place a significant compliance and operational burden on in-scope entities, which should not be underestimated, say lawyers at Travers Smith.