Financial Services UK

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.  

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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

  • What EU Opinion May Mean For ESG Product Classification

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    The recently issued European Supervisory Authority opinion on the Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation offers key recommendations, including revising the definition of sustainable investments and making principal adverse impacts consideration mandatory, that could sway the European Commission’s final approach to product classification, say lawyers at Debevoise.

  • What New UK Listing Rules Mean For Distressed Companies

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    The Financial Conduct Authority’s recently published overhaul of U.K. listing rules makes it easier for advisers to restructure distressed listed companies, and in moving to a more disclosure-based approach, simplifies timelines and increases opportunities for investors, say Kate Stephenson and Sarah Ullathorne at Kirkland & Ellis.

  • AI Reforms Prompt Fintech Compliance Considerations

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    With the EU Artificial Intelligence Act's Aug. 1 enforcement, and the U.K.'s new plans to introduce AI reforms, fintech companies should consider how to best focus limited resources as they balance innovation and compliance, says Nicola Kerr-Shaw at Skadden.

  • Irish Businesses Should Act Now To Prepare For EU AI Act

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    Artificial intelligence is increasingly transforming the Irish job market, and proactive engagement with the forthcoming European Union AI Act, a significant shift in the regulatory landscape for Irish businesses, will be essential for Irish businesses to responsibly harness AI’s advantages and to maintain legal compliance, say lawyers at Pinsent Masons.

  • EU Investment Fund Standards Offer Welcome Clarity

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    The European Commission’s recently published regulatory technical standards for long-term investments, which granted managers greater flexibility with respect to open-ended European long-term investment funds, should help managers active in the space navigate the mandatory liquidity requirements for long-term investment funds, say Zac Mellor-Clark and Nishkaam Paul at Fried Frank.

  • Unpacking The New Concept Of 'Trading Misfeasance'

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    In addition to granting one of the largest trading awards since the Insolvency Act was passed in 1986, the High Court recently introduced a novel claim for misfeasant trading in Wright v. Chappell, opening the door to liability for directors, even where insolvent liquidation or administration was not inevitable, say lawyers at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Key Takeaways From Proposed EU Anticorruption Directive

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    The European Commission's anticorruption proposal, on which the EU Council recently adopted a position, will substantially alter the landscape of corporate compliance and liability across the EU, so companies will need to undertake rigorous revisions of their compliance frameworks to align with the directive's demands, say lawyers at Linklaters.

  • How Regulation Of Tech Providers Is Breaking New Ground

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    The forthcoming EU regulation on digital operational resilience and the U.K. critical third-party regime, by expanding the direct application of financial services regulation to designated technology providers, represent a significant development that is not to be underestimated, say David Berman and Emily Lemaire at Covington.

  • What EU Net-Zero Act Will Mean For Tech Manufacturers

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    Martin Weitenberg at Eversheds Sutherland discusses the European Council’s recently adopted Net-Zero Industry Act and provides an overview of its main elements relevant for net-zero technology manufacturers, including benchmarks, enhanced permitting procedures and the creation of new institutions.

  • Complying With EU Commission's Joint Purchasing Rules

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    One year after the European Commission released its revised guidelines on horizontal cooperation agreements, attorneys at Crowell & Moring reflect on the various forms such agreements can take, and how parties can avoid structuring arrangements that run afoul of competition law.

  • Tips For Implementing EU Sustainability Reporting Guidance

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    Lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell discuss the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group’s recently published guidance on double materiality assessments and offer takeaways on achieving a sustainability directive-compliant process that could enhance clarity and consistency among multinational stakeholders.

  • Why Ukraine Aircraft Insurance Case Failed To Take Off In UK

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    In Aercap v. PJSC Insurance, the High Court decided the claimants could not avoid an exclusive jurisdiction clause and advance their case in England rather than Ukraine, and the reasoning is likely to be of relevance in future jurisdiction disputes, say Abigail Healey and Genevieve Douglas at Quillon Law.

  • Labour's 'Fresh Approach' To Tackling Financial Crime

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    Given newly elected Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s background as a criminal defense lawyer and director of public prosecutions, an administration with strong views on financial crime can be expected, and revenue raising and proceeds of crime recovery are likely to be at the forefront, says Matthew Cowie at Rahman Ravelli.

  • Unpacking Pressures, Trends Affecting Global Supply Chains

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    A recent HSBC report reveals a number of trends and challenges for global supply chains in the current uncertain geopolitical landscape, and with constant emerging opportunities, companies that can stay informed, be proactive and adapt to change will be well positioned to succeed, says Michelle Craven-Faulkner at Shoosmiths.

  • What UK Digital Markets Act Will Mean For Competition Law

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    The new Digital Markets Act’s reforms will strengthen the Competition and Markets Authority's investigatory and enforcement powers across its full remit of merger control and antitrust investigations, representing a seismic shift in the U.K. competition and consumer law landscape, say lawyers at Travers Smith.

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