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Experts See Risks In FCA's Soft-Touch Response To AI

The Financial Conduct Authority has so far failed to detail its rules on artificial intelligence and is moving toward a reliance on companies to self-report, putting it at risk of deferring excessively to the sector it regulates, legal experts say.
November 08, 2024
Oligarch's Estate Resists Fraud Claim In $3B Inheritance Fight

The estate of a Russian cement tycoon has resisted claims by his widow and daughter that the businessman plotted to defraud them of their inheritance as part of a battle over more than $3 billion worth of assets.
November 08, 2024
Dare CEO Said Traders Faking Illness Left Firm 'In Disarray'

The chief executive officer of an energy investing company told a court Friday that when two of his most senior traders faked illness to avoid noncompete restrictions before jumping ship for a rival, it left the business "in disarray."
November 08, 2024
Shard Capital Sues Biz Owners Over £5M Inflated Valuation

A subsidiary of a U.K. financier has sued the former owners of a group of companies it acquired, seeking £5 million ($6.5 million) in damages over claims they made material errors in their accounting that inflated the group's value.
November 08, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

This past week in London has seen collapsed German airline Air Berlin take action against its former auditor KPMG, the associate editor at The Spectator hit with a libel claim by a mosque over the far-right riots that took place in August and British licensing authority the Performing Right Society sue Parklife Manchester and four other festival organizers. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
November 08, 2024
Auditor Blames Lendy's Misstatements For Investor Losses

An auditor has admitted it made mistakes when it vetted a lending platform's accounts but denied the failures caused investors to lose an alleged £15.6 million ($20.2 million), claiming the platform had fraudulently misrepresented its financial health.
November 08, 2024
FCA Confirms Rules For Commercial Pension Dashboards

The U.K.'s financial watchdog set out detailed rules for how commercial pension dashboards will operate in the future, but experts say the lack of a fixed launch date could hinder the emerging sector.
November 08, 2024
EU Sets Out Climate-Friendly Finance Targets For COP29

The European Union will later in November set out its climate finance and investment targets at a climate change conference in Azerbaijan, pushing for stronger global alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement, it said in a statement on Friday.
November 08, 2024
Shipowner Wins OK To Sell Oil Stranded At Sea By Sanctions

A shipowner can sell crude oil that was stranded at sea when the charterer was placed on a U.S. sanctions list, a London judge said Friday, ruling the cash from the ultimate buyer can be paid into the English courts.
November 08, 2024
Lawyers Deny Giving Bad Advice On £635K Crypto-Fraud

A boutique investment law firm has denied providing "valueless advice" to an alleged victim of a cryptocurrency fraud on how to recover her money, and said it helped to secure a freezing order against the fraudsters.
November 07, 2024
ECJ Says VAT Applies To Land Prepared For Building

Land with foundations to build residential housing is subject to value-added tax as a supply of land in the European Union, the European Court of Justice said Thursday in a dispute between Denmark's tax authority and a real estate company.
November 07, 2024
Binance Cites AML Breaches In €144M Solaris Debit Card Row

A Binance company has hit back at online banking group Solaris' €144 million ($156 million) claim over a collapsed cryptocurrency debit card scheme, telling a London court it was entitled to end the deal after Solaris companies broke anti-money laundering rules.
November 07, 2024
5 Lessons For Lawyers From The UK Gov't Anti-Fraud Advice

Britain's largest companies face a challenge after being given 10 months to build safety rails to stop their employees committing fraud, lawyers say, after the government released advice on how they should comply with landmark anti-fraud legislation.
November 07, 2024
Rainforest Investment Bosses Appeal £37M Fraud Convictions

Two directors of an ethical-investment scheme imprisoned for defrauding investors out of £37 million ($48 million) sought to overturn their convictions at a London appeals court Thursday, arguing jurors were not told what the goal of the conspiracy was.
November 07, 2024
EU Tax Nominee Says Bloc Could Go It Alone On Digital Tax

The nominee to serve as the European Union's next tax commissioner said Thursday that the EU should seek its own solution to digital taxation if it can't keep the U.S. on its side following the elections this week.
November 07, 2024
Kingsley Napley Launches Regulatory Consultancy

Kingsley Napley LLP has launched a consultancy to help clients deal with regulatory issues as legal markets open up around the world.
November 07, 2024
Eurojust Busts Fake Investment Platforms For Stealing €10M

Authorities in Germany and Cyprus have dismantled 13 fake investment platforms that have allegedly defrauded victims out of more than €10 million ($10.8 million) in a cross-border operation, the European law enforcers said on Thursday.
November 07, 2024
CMA Raises Concerns Over Amex GBT's $570M Buy Of Rival

The proposed $570 million acquisition by American Express Global Business Travel Inc., a corporate travel management company, of rival CWT Holdings LLC in the U.K. could "lead to reduced choice and quality" in Britain, the antitrust watchdog has warned.
November 07, 2024
FCA Warns Firms On Inaccurate Transaction Reporting

The Financial Conduct Authority warned on Thursday that some regulated companies are reporting their transactions inaccurately — even after they have taken remedial measures.
November 07, 2024
2 Men Convicted Of £1.5M Crypto-Investment Fraud

The Financial Conduct Authority said Thursday that it has secured convictions against two individuals involved in a £1.5 million ($1.9 million) crypto-investment fraud that spanned more than two years.
November 06, 2024
EU Court Won't Toss Commission's Tax Clawback In Portugal

A European Union court on Wednesday tossed two challenges to a European Commission ruling that Portugal must claw back tax breaks provided to companies with no local economic activity because that ran counter to commission-approved policies.
November 06, 2024
Hedge Fund Lawyer Defends Signing Off On £1.4B Fraud Docs

The former top lawyer at a hedge fund accused of defrauding Denmark's tax authority of £1.4 billion ($1.8 billion), who signed off on documents falsely confirming the trades were legitimate, told a London trial he didn't think it "was a big deal at the time."
November 06, 2024
Rachel Reeves Calls Budget A 'Once In A Parliament' Reset

Chancellor Rachel Reeves told lawmakers on Wednesday that her inaugural budget in October was a "once in a Parliament" reset and that her government would not set out fiscal proposals of a similar scale again.
November 06, 2024
Credit Suisse, Crédit Agricole Lose EU Cartel Fine Challenge

Credit Suisse and Crédit Agricole lost their challenge at a European Court on Wednesday to millions of euros in fines imposed by the European Commission for their involvement in a bond trading cartel.
November 06, 2024
Gov't Advice Kick-Starts Race To Comply With UK Fraud Law

The largest companies in Britain have 10 months to install safeguards to prevent employees from committing fraud after the government published guidance Wednesday on a sweeping new offense that would hold businesses criminally responsible for profiting from fraud.
November 06, 2024
Commerzbank Applies To ECB For €400M Buyback Approval

Commerzbank AG said Wednesday that it is seeking the go-ahead from the European Central Bank to launch a share buyback of up to €400 million ($430 million), the second stage of its program to repurchase stock.

Editor's Picks

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.
5 Questions for Osborne Clarke Partner Nick Price

The Payment Systems Regulator is due to start forcing payment firms to reimburse victims of scams who have been tricked by a fraudster into transferring them money. Here, Law360 talks to Osborne Clarke partner Nick Price about how this new regime could mean uncertainty about compliance.

Expert Analysis

Factors Driving EU Competition Policy For The Next 5 Years

Teresa Ribera Rodríguez’s recent nomination as the new European Union commissioner for competition prompts questions about policy and enforcement, with goals to enhance competition in business, implement stronger and faster enforcement, and promote and fund decarbonization likely in her sights during a five-year term, say lawyers at Linklaters.
What UK Procurement Act Delay Will Mean For Stakeholders

The Procurement Act 2023’s delay until February 2025 has sparked debate among contracting authorities and suppliers, and the Labour Party’s preference for a broader reform package demonstrates the challenges involved in implementing legislative changes where there is a change in government, say lawyers at Shoosmiths.
How Energy Scheme Is Affecting Large Co. Fund Investment

The latest phase of the Department of Energy and Climate Change's Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme implicates funds with investments in large companies by establishing significant and complex changes to the reporting cycle for mandatory assessments, say lawyers at Macfarlanes.
How Companies House Enforcement Powers Are Growing

Companies House's recently increased ability to assess what material is submitted to the U.K. register of companies, and to proportionately enforce where violations have occurred, may require some degree of cultural shift within many companies, say lawyers at Greenberg Traurig.
How New Sanctions Office Will Affect UK Trade Landscape

The recent launch of the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation will help to create a more comprehensive civil enforcement terrain, but the potential for multiple investigations means businesses should reassess their systems to ensure they do not inadvertently incur civil liability, says Julia Pearce at Robertson Pugh.
FCA Savings Update Focuses On Good Customer Outcomes

The Financial Conduct Authority’s recent cash savings update emphasizes its expectations of firms to deliver fair value to consumers by documenting the rationale for actions at each stage, considering customer communications and demonstrating that potential harms are acted upon, say Matt Handfield, Charlotte Rendle and Caroline Hunter-Yeats at Simmons & Simmons.
5 Takeaways From UK Justices' Arbitration Jurisdiction Ruling

The U.K. Supreme Court's recent judgment in UniCredit Bank v. RusChemAlliance, upholding an injunction against a lawsuit that attempted to shift arbitration away from a contractually designated venue, provides helpful guidance on when such injunctions may be available, say attorneys at Fladgate.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.