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Financial Services UK
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April 26, 2024
ECJ OKs Later Limits For Borrowers Stuck With Unfair Contracts
Consumers should not be time-barred from seeking repayment of costs stemming from unfair contract terms because they were unaware of the unfairness, but the clock should start ticking in the event of a court decision to that effect, the European Court of Justice ruled Thursday.
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April 26, 2024
Freshfields Guides PE Giant CVC Capital's Upsized $2.1B IPO
European private equity giant CVC Capital Partners PLC rose in debut trading Friday after the firm priced an upsized €2 billion ($2.1 billion) initial public offering, marking the latest high-profile listing in Europe, represented by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.
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April 26, 2024
UK Gov't Rejects Lawmakers' Criticism Of Edinburgh Reforms
The U.K. government has rejected criticisms from the Treasury Committee that the post-Brexit financial services reform program is moving too slowly, claiming the changes are on track in a letter published Friday.
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April 26, 2024
FCA Defends Naming Firms Under Investigation
The Financial Conduct Authority on Friday defended its proposed naming of companies under investigation in a letter to a House of Lords committee.
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April 26, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen budget airline Ryanair file a claim against NATS PLC after the air traffic controller's system collapsed, Mastercard and Visa Europe face group claims from Christian Dior and dozens of other beauty retailers, an intellectual property clash between the publisher of The Sun and ITV, and ISC Europe sue a former director for alleged money laundering. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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April 26, 2024
HSBC Recruiter Can't Bring Claim Over 'Eye-Rolling' Boss
A former HSBC recruiter with an obsessive-compulsive disorder can't sue the bank for disability bias over his manager's eye-rolling after a tribunal ruled the claim was brought too late.
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April 26, 2024
HSBC Beats Investors' £1.3B Disney Film Scheme Fraud Case
HSBC fended off on Friday a £1.3 billion ($1.6 billion) fraud claim brought by hundreds of investors who alleged the bank misled them into financing a Disney movie tax relief scheme it developed which turned out to be worthless.
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April 25, 2024
Law Firm Escapes £68M Ponzi Fraud Negligence Claim
Lupton Fawcett LLP has averted a £68 million ($85 million) professional negligence claim against it, as a London court ruled the claimants' alleged loss as victims of a Ponzi fraud could not be linked to the law firm's actions.
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April 25, 2024
UN Insurance Climate Group Relaunched After Backlash
An alliance of global insurers formed to accelerate the sector's move to a carbon-neutral economy was replaced on Thursday by a group encompassing less stringent requirements, after attempts to establish shared climate efforts prompted legal and regulatory backlash last year.
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April 25, 2024
Ex-Locke Lord Atty Loses Fight To Challenge Fraud Sentence
A London appellate court on Thursday blocked Locke Lord LLP's former banking partner from challenging his prison sentence for taking part in a £21 million ($26.2 million) Ponzi scheme.
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April 25, 2024
Standards Setter Unveils Toolbox for Central Counterparties
A global standards setter released a new toolbox Thursday to ensure that national authorities have access to adequate financial resources and tools to address the failure of central counterparties, which are essential to financial markets.
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April 25, 2024
Firms Urge Delays To 'Unclear' FCA Greenwashing Guidance
Financial companies are urging the City watchdog to slow its anti-greenwashing rule that comes in force in May as legal experts warn that it has failed to clarify all its expectations in final guidance, putting businesses that make the wrong call at risk of enforcement action.
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April 25, 2024
Hipgnosis Ditches Blackstone Bid For Concord's $1.5B Offer
Hipgnosis Songs has accepted a revised offer from its U.S. competitor Concord Chorus to buy the music rights investor for $1.5 billion, ditching Blackstone's $1.2 billion offer just days after accepting the private equity giant's deal.
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April 25, 2024
EU Parliament Gives Final Approval To AML Package
The European Parliament has given the final go-ahead to a package of laws to fight money laundering and terrorist financing, creating a single rule book and establishing a dedicated agency for the bloc.
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April 24, 2024
Ex-Autonomy GC Tells Jurors He Wanted To Be 'Helpful' To HP
Autonomy's former U.S. general counsel conceded Wednesday in the criminal trial of former CEO Michael Lynch that he told an HP lawyer he wanted to be as "helpful" as possible to the company as it was investigating Autonomy-related issues that popped up after the Silicon Valley giant purchased the British company, and that he was told he could face liability for his work at Autonomy.
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April 24, 2024
Klarna Trims Down Basque Bank's European Logo TM
Buy-now, pay-later giant Klarna has won its fight to restrict trademark registration for a Spanish bank's logo, blocking protection in a myriad of categories ranging from laundry detergent to musical instruments.
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April 24, 2024
Oligarch's Family Can't Nix €1.5B Bankruptcy Bid
The widow and a daughter of the late Russian cement oligarch Oleg Bourlakov stumbled in their global legal battle with relatives over his fortune after a London judge declined to stop €1.48 billion ($1.59 billion) bankruptcy proceedings in St. Petersburg.
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April 24, 2024
Feds Nab Latest OneCoin Plea On $35M Laundering Charge
An eighth defendant has been charged by federal prosecutors over the global OneCoin cryptocurrency scam and has pled guilty to laundering about $35 million in illicit proceeds through bank accounts he controlled in China and Hong Kong.
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April 24, 2024
Fund Manager Denies Losing Jailed Politician's Wife £8M
A fund manager has denied transferring €28 million ($30 million) from the account of an imprisoned Turkish politician's wife without her permission, claiming she gave written instructions to invest the money in emerging markets.
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April 24, 2024
EU Keeps Gibraltar, Panama, UAE On AML Blacklist
Gibraltar, Panama and the United Arab Emirates should remain on the European Union's blacklist of high-risk countries for money laundering, the European Parliament said, stopping the EU from following the lead of a global organization promoting standards for countries to fight those crimes.
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April 24, 2024
Payments Watchdog Seeks Responses On Supervision Plans
The Payment Systems Regulator said Wednesday it is opening a consultation on its approach to supervision of payment systems operators, including new principles for firms in the sector to apply.
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April 24, 2024
Osborne Clarke Guides Canada Life's £46M Lexmark Deal
Insurer Canada Life has agreed to a £46 million ($57 million) buy-in with the pension scheme of printing business Lexmark Holdings Inc. in a transaction guided by Osborne Clarke LLP.
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April 24, 2024
PRA Asks Banks To Review Private Equity Exposure
The Prudential Regulation Authority asked banks to review and assess their current practices to ensure they align with the regulator's expectations for effective risk management concerning private equity-linked credit and counterparty exposures.
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April 24, 2024
EU Says 3 States Aren't Correctly Following AML Law
The European Commission said Wednesday that three European Union countries — Ireland, France and Latvia — aren't correctly implementing the bloc's laws against money laundering, meaning that the countries now have two months to correct the shortcomings.
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April 24, 2024
Law Firm Ordered To Repay Couple £194K For Loan Breach
A court has ordered a law firm to reimburse a married couple at least £194,000 ($241,000) after finding that it had failed to adhere to the terms of two loan agreements the pair provided to help to fund its working capital and cover general business expenses.
Expert Analysis
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FCA Consumer Duty May Pose Enforcement Challenges
The new U.K. Financial Conduct Authority consumer duty sets higher standards of customer protection and transparency for financial services firms, but given the myriad products available across the sector, policing the regulations is going to be a challenging task, says Alessio Ianiello at Keller Postman.
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UK Insolvency Reform Review Shows Measures Are Working
The U.K. Insolvency Service's recently published review of legislative reforms to the corporate insolvency regime demonstrates that despite being underutilized, the measures have been shown to help viable companies survive, and with the current difficult economic environment, will likely be an important aspect of organizational restructuring going forward, says Kirsten Fulton-Fleming at Taylor Wessing.
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More UK Collective Actions On The Horizon After Forex Ruling
A U.K. appeals court's recent decision in Forex case Evans v. Barclays is likely to significantly widen the scope of opt-out collective proceedings that can be brought, paving the way for more class actions by prospective claimants who have previously been unable to bring individual claims, say Robin Henry and Tamara Davis at Collyer Bristow.
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FCA Listing Reform Proposals Aim To Modernize UK Markets
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority's recent proposals to reform listing rules will enhance equities while retaining protections and high governance standards, and will also make the capital markets work more efficiently and competitively with other global markets, say lawyers at Greenberg Traurig.
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Takeaways From ICO's Action In NatWest Privacy Dispute
The U.K. Information Commissioner’s Office's latest intervention in the Nigel Farage NatWest Bank dispute highlights the importance of the legal responsibilities of all data processors in possession of sensitive information, and is a reminder that upholding bank customers' privacy rights is paramount, says James Kelliher at Keller Postman.
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How The OECD Global Tax Proposal Could Affect M&A
Following agreement on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Pillar Two proposal to introduce a global minimum tax, domestic implementation is expected to have a significant impact on international M&A transactions, with financial modeling, deal structuring, risk allocation and joint venture arrangements likely to be affected, say lawyers at Freshfields.
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How Russia Sanctions May Complicate Contract Obligations
Against the backdrop of recent comprehensive sanctions against Russia and Belarus, a review of recent U.K. case law clarifies that certain force majeure clauses likely cover trade sanctions, and that future litigation will further develop the scope of force majeure and frustration in the context of sanctions, says Frances Jenkins at Quillon Law.
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New Guidance Offers Clarity For Charities On ESG Investing
The need for charities to understand investing in line with environmental, social and governance aspirations has never been more pressing, and recently updated U.K. Charity Commission guidance should give trustees confidence to make decisions that are right for their organization, says Robert Nieri at Shoosmiths.
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US And EU Poised For Closer Ties In Tech Financial Market
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the European Commission are both concerned about the challenges posed by the increasing digitalization of financial products, such as the use of AI and new forms of credit, and by working together, the two regulators can share information and best practices, says Yulia Makarova at Cooley.
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FCA Case Failures Highlight Value Of Robust Investigation
The recent U.K. upper tribunal judgment in Seiler, Whitestone and Raitzin v. The Financial Conduct Authority, criticizing the regulator for accepting a narrative advanced by the firm, makes clear that such admissions must not get in the way of a proper investigation to enable agencies to target the correct individuals, say Tom Bushnell and Olivia Dwan at Hickman & Rose.
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UK Shares-Tax Proposals Offer Long-Awaited Modernization
The U.K. government's recent consultation on the introduction of a new tax on transactions in securities raises detailed legal and practical issues, but the prospect of a single digital stamp tax offering both streamlined legislation and administration will be welcomed, say Zoë Arnautov and Mark Sheiham at Simmons & Simmons.
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Directors Should Beware Reinvigorated UK Insolvency Service
The recent lengthy disqualification of Carillion directors serves as a salutary lesson to executives on the level of third-party scrutiny to which their actions may be exposed, and a reminder that the directors’ fiduciary duty to creditors is paramount once a company is irretrievably insolvent, says Ben Drew at Fladgate.
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The New Accountability Landscape For Financial Regulators
The preliminary-stage success of a group of U.K. lawmakers in a case against the Financial Conduct Authority highlights the significant hurdles for review of regulatory actions, but the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 creates additional visibility into the regulators' decision making, which may lead to an increase in judicial review activity, say attorneys at Cleary.
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Director Responsibilities Amid Russian Asset Seizures
Following Russia's recent takeover of several companies, shareholders may argue that directors failed to properly guard the companies' assets and choose to bring derivative claims or unfair prejudice petitions, say lawyers at Collyer Bristow.
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Investors Should Prepare For Possible EU Energy Treaty Exit
Following the European Commission’s recent call for the European Union and Euratom to withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty, investors in the energy sector should assess the legal structure of their existing investments and consider restructuring to ensure adequate protections, says Philipp Kurek at Kirkland.