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Financial Services UK
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August 02, 2024
Fieldfisher Adds Banking Litigation Pro From Hausfeld
Fieldfisher LLP has hired "the perfect" banking and finance litigation expert as a partner in its London office, as the firm moves to strengthen its financial practice both in the U.K. and abroad.
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July 26, 2024
Valderrama Golf Course Owner Heir Blocked From Sale Profits
The heir to the former owner of the Valderrama golf course in Spain lost his fight Friday for a slice of a €39.1 million ($42.5 million) sale as an appellate court rejected his interpretation of a profit-sharing agreement.
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July 26, 2024
FCA To Overhaul Prospectus Rules To Boost Capital Markets
The Financial Conduct Authority set out plans to shake up the U.K.'s prospectus regime Friday, including new rules for public offers and risk disclosures, to help boost the country's ailing capital markets.
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July 26, 2024
EU Banks Must Improve Cyberattack Protection, ECB Says
Lenders in the eurozone still suffer from "shortcomings" in fighting against and recovering from a severe — but plausible — cyberattack, the European Central Bank said Friday after it conducted a resilience stress test.
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July 26, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen U.K. band The 1975 face action by Future Sound Asia after its performance in Malaysia resulted in a festival's cancelation, Spectrum Insurance hit by The Motoring Organization following their dispute over information misuse, and a former police constable pursue defamation against a colleague for allegedly instigating a campaign of harassment against her. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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July 26, 2024
Consultant Claims $2M From Port Co. For Unpaid Fees
A Swiss business consultancy has claimed that an English port operator owes it more than $2 million in unpaid fixed and variable fees it alleged were tied to shareholder dividends of which it was not informed.
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July 26, 2024
Fraudster Sentenced For Instagram Motor Insurance Scam
A man who made almost £18,000 by operating as a "ghost broker" and selling invalid car insurance policies on Instagram has been handed a suspended prison sentence of 24 months at a London court, City Police has said.
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July 26, 2024
NatWest To Buy £2.5B Mortgage Portfolio From Metro Bank
NatWest will acquire a £2.5 billion ($3.2 billion) portfolio of U.K. residential mortgages from Metro Bank as it seeks to expand its retail book without taking on unnecessary risk, the lenders said on Friday.
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July 25, 2024
Natwest Seeks €155M Swap Funds From Dutch Mortgage Co.
NatWest's investment banking arm, which alleges a Dutch financial services company owes it €155 million ($168.3 million) under deeds in swaps transactions, argued at the opening of a London trial Thursday that the company wrongly relied on contractual terms to delay payment.
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July 25, 2024
Audit Watchdog Sanctioned Firms £48M Last Year
The Financial Reporting Council revealed Thursday that it fined firms a total of £48.2 million ($62 million) in the financial year ended March 31, including a £21 million fine against auditor KPMG related to its accounting for construction giant Carillion prior to its collapse in 2018.
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July 25, 2024
Hayes Can Appeal Rate Rigging Conviction At Top UK Court
Two traders convicted of manipulating benchmark interest rates have been granted permission to appeal their cases to the U.K.'s highest court, their representatives said on Thursday.
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July 25, 2024
Plan To Return WealthTek Clients' Money Gets Green Light
The Financial Conduct Authority said Thursday that the High Court has approved a plan by the joint special administrators of collapsed regulated wealth manager WealthTek LLP to return money and investments it held for clients.
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July 25, 2024
Labour Gov't Faces 'Tricky Balancing Act' On Policy Priorities
The Labour government faces a "tricky balancing act" in implementing policies that meet the financial needs of different generations, pensions provider Aegon said Thursday,
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July 25, 2024
4 Banks Ordered To Comply With UK Retail Competition Rules
HSBC, Lloyds, TSB and Allied Irish Banks have broken rules designed to help customers find the best deals, Britain's antitrust authority said Thursday, adding that it has ordered the lenders to comply with competition regulation.
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July 25, 2024
Belgium Taken To EU Court Over Deposit Exemption Rules
The European Union's executive branch said Thursday that it is taking Belgium to court alleging that the country's system of exempting remuneration of savings deposits from tax violates EU law.
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July 25, 2024
FCA Consumer Duty Deadline May Spark Clash With UK Gov't
The new Labour government and the Financial Conduct Authority could be heading for a clash over what constitutes a vulnerable consumer and how the laws protecting them from abuse should be enforced.
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July 25, 2024
Coinbase Unit Fined £3.5M For Crypto-Related Breaches
The Financial Conduct Authority said Thursday it has fined a payments company £3.5 million ($4.5 million) for "repeatedly breaching" restrictions against enabling crypto-asset trading, the first time the watchdog has taken enforcement action under regulations governing electronic money.
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July 25, 2024
Revolut Gets UK Banking License To Permit Expansion
An online banking subsidiary of Revolut Group Holdings Ltd. has been granted a U.K. banking license, allowing it to expand its financial services and potentially offer customers in Britain traditional banking products such as loans and savings accounts, the lender said Thursday.
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July 24, 2024
Ex-Barclays CEO Told To Testify In Appeal Of Qatar Fees Fine
Former Barclays CEO John Varley was ordered by a London tribunal Wednesday to give evidence in the bank's appeal against a £50 million ($64.6 million) fine over its emergency fundraising with Qatar during the 2008 financial crash.
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July 24, 2024
EU Trade Body Warns Against FCA Enforcement Plans
A trade body for European financial firms has warned that the Financial Conduct Authority's proposed naming of companies in enforcement investigations would make the U.K. an international outlier, damaging competitiveness.
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July 24, 2024
Cuban Bank Denies Transferring €72M Debt To Offshore Fund
Cuba's former central bank told an English appeals court Wednesday that an offshore fund cannot sue it over €72 million ($78.2 million) of unpaid sovereign debt, because it did not consent to the assignment of the debt to the fund.
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July 24, 2024
Asset Recovery Firms Deny Profit-Stripping Rule Is Too Harsh
Two asset recovery companies told Britain's top court Wednesday that a law to strip profits from people who quit jobs to chase the business of a former employer is not "too harsh," in a case with potentially wide implications for "bad-faith resignations."
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July 24, 2024
Russia Sanctions Enforcement Lacks Bite, UK Charity Says
Britain must develop a clearer sanctions enforcement strategy, an anti-corruption charity said on Wednesday, as it revealed that the government has issued no fines for breaches of rules since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, more than two years ago.
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July 24, 2024
UniCredit To Buy Vodeno, Aion Bank For €370M
Italy's UniCredit said Wednesday that it will buy cloud-based digital banking services provider Vodeno and online bank Aion for approximately €370 million ($401 million) in total as a foray into new financial technology.
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July 24, 2024
UK Bans 830 Directors For COVID Loan Abuse In 12 Months
Hundreds of company directors have been banned in the last year as a result of COVID loan abuse, the Insolvency Service said Wednesday, adding that it has recovered almost £3 million ($3.8 million) of taxpayers' money.
Expert Analysis
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Litigation Funding Implications Amid Post-PACCAR Disputes
An English tribunal's recent decision in Neill v. Sony, allowing an appeal on the enforceability of a litigation funding agreement, highlights how the legislative developments on funding limits following the U.K. Supreme Court's 2023 decision in Paccar v. Competition Appeal Tribunal may affect practitioners, say Andrew Leitch and Anoma Rekhi at BCLP.
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What Extension Of French FDI Control Means For Investors
The recently published French order on foreign investment control expands the regime's application to more sectors and at a lower threshold of share ownership, illustrating France's determination to maintain sovereignty over its supply chains in sensitive sectors, and adding new considerations for potential investors in these areas, say lawyers at Linklaters.
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What To Expect For Private Capital Investment Funds In 2024
As 2024 gets underway, market sentiment in the private fundraising sphere seems more optimistic, with a greater focus on deal sourcing and operational optimizations, and an increased emphasis on impact and sustainability strategies, say lawyers at Ropes & Gray.
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Cayman Islands Off AML Risk Lists, Signaling Robust Controls
As a world-leading jurisdiction for securitization special purpose entities, the removal of the Cayman Islands from increased anti-money laundering monitoring lists is a significant milestone that will benefit new and existing financial services customers conducting business in the territory, say lawyers at Walkers Global.
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Cos. Should Plan Now For Extensive EU Data Act Obligations
The recently enacted EU Data Act imposes wide-ranging requirements across industries and enterprises of all sizes, and with less than 20 months until the provisions begin to apply, businesses planning compliance will need to incorporate significant product changes and revision of contract terms, say Nick Banasevic, Robert Spano and Ciara O'Gara at Gibson Dunn.
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How Decision On A Key Definition Affects SMEs
The Financial Conduct Authority's decision not to extend the definition of small and midsized enterprises may benefit banks and finance providers in the current high interest rate environment and where SMEs in certain sectors may be under financial pressure in light of the cost-of-living crisis in order to streamline it, says Rachael Healey at RPC.
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What New Digital Sandbox Regs Hold In Store For UK Markets
The recently enacted Digital Sandbox Regulations will be key to incorporating distributed ledger technology into the activities of a central securities depository, but despite being a potentially transformative innovation, a number of considerations may need to be addressed to accommodate the trading, settlement and maintenance of shares, say Tom Bacon and Andrew Tsang at BCLP.
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Why Investment In Battery Supply Chain Is Important For UK
The recently published U.K. battery strategy sets out the government’s vision for a globally competitive battery supply chain, and it is critical that the U.K. secures investment to maximize opportunities for economic prosperity and net-zero transition, say lawyers at Watson Farley & Williams.
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What Extending Corporate Liability Will Mean For Foreign Cos.
Certain sections of the Economic Crime Act enacted in December 2023 make it easier to prosecute companies for economic crimes committed abroad, and organizations need to consider their exposure and the new ways they can be held liable for the actions of their personnel, say Dan Hudson at Seladore Legal and Christopher Coltart at 2 Hare Court.
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A Consequential Moment For Sanctions Activity
It is clear from the U.K. Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation's review of the 2022-2023 financial year that the unprecedented scale of designated persons and the value of assets frozen as a result has placed enormous pressure on OFSI and its partners, say lawyers at Greenberg Traurig.
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ECJ Ruling Triggers Reconsiderations Of Using AI In Hiring
A recent European Court of Justice ruling, clarifying that the General Data Protection Regulation could apply to decisions made by artificial intelligence, serves as a warning to employers, as the use of AI in recruitment may lead to more discrimination claims, say Dino Wilkinson and James Major at Clyde & Co.
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Economic Crime Act Offers Welcome Reform To AML Regime
The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act exemption for mixed-property transactions that came into force on Jan. 15 as part of the U.K.'s anti-money laundering regime is long overdue, and should end economic harm to businesses, giving banks confidence to adopt a more pragmatic approach, say Matthew Getz and Joseph Fox-Davies at Pallas Partners.
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3 Financial Services Hot Topics To Watch In 2024
Technology, ESG and private markets are set to have the greatest impact on financial markets in 2024, as firms grapple with increasing regulatory change and a shifting political backdrop on both sides of the Atlantic, says Matthew Allen at Eversheds Sutherland.
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What Venice Swaps Ruling Says About Foreign Law Disputes
The English appeals court's decision in Banca Intesa v. Venice that the English law swaps are valid and enforceable will be welcomed by banks, and it provides valuable commentary on the English courts' approach toward the interpretation of foreign law, say Harriet Campbell and Richard Marshall at Penningtons Manches.
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Key Litigation Funding Rulings Will Drive Reform In 2024
Ground-breaking judgments on disputes funding and fee arrangements from 2023 — including that litigation funding agreements could be damages-based agreements, rendering them unenforceable — will bring legislative changes in 2024, which could have a substantial impact on litigation risk for several sectors, say Verity Jackson-Grant and David Bridge at Simmons & Simmons.