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Financial Services UK

  • August 05, 2025

    Companies House To Roll Out Compulsory ID Verification

    Companies House said Tuesday that from November this year it will require company directors to verify their identities, the latest move in the registrar's rollout of heightened powers to protect against fraud.

  • August 05, 2025

    AML Reforms Are Missed Opportunity, Law Society Says

    The government's proposed updates to anti-money laundering regulations will do little to ease the compliance burden on law firms and are a "missed opportunity" to cut unnecessary rules, the body representing solicitors said on Tuesday.

  • August 05, 2025

    Football Club Owner Accused Of Dodging $93M Share Deal

    An investment vehicle has sued John Textor, the former owner of Crystal Palace FC, for allegedly refusing to buy its stake in his company that owns a portfolio of football clubs for $93.6 million, which it claimed is required under an investment deal.

  • August 05, 2025

    FCA Warns Claims Cos. Against Misleading Car Finance Ads

    The Financial Conduct Authority has told claims management companies in a letter to review financial advertising for motor finance claims, after seeing misleading redress rates from the sector and law firms.

  • August 05, 2025

    FCA Issues £46M In Fines For Woodford Fund Failures

    The Financial Conduct Authority has provisionally hit Neil Woodford and Woodford Investment Management with fines totaling £46 million ($61 million) for alleged failures in their management of a flagship £3.7 billion fund that led to its high-profile collapse in 2019.

  • August 04, 2025

    StanChart Can't Withhold Docs In £1.5B Iran Sanctions Case

    Standard Chartered on Monday lost a bid to withhold regulatory documents from investors suing the bank for £1.5 billion ($2 billion) for allegedly making untrue or misleading statements about its noncompliance with sanctions.

  • August 04, 2025

    Court Freezes Couple's £5M Over Alleged Misuse Of Co. Cash

    A London court granted a freezing order Monday worth more than £5.1 million ($6.8 million) against a married couple accused of siphoning funds from a holding company, finding that there is a real risk that they will scatter their assets.

  • August 04, 2025

    Sellers To Pay £5M For Hiding Breaches In Education Biz Sale

    The sellers of a military education business must pay more than £5.2 million ($6.9 million) in damages to the buyer after a court held Monday they had breached the terms of the deal by not disclosing violating funding regulations.

  • August 04, 2025

    VC Firm Beats Ex-Rosenblatt Firm's Legal Bill Appeal

    A venture capital firm beat a City law firm's appeal over costs the firm claimed to be owed for its representation under a conditional fee agreement when a London judge ruled that the financial business could not be criticized for raising an argument late in its dispute about whether it was liable to pay the legal bill.

  • August 04, 2025

    Pensions Dashboards Could Ease UK Inheritance Tax 'Chaos'

    The government could use new online retirement savings portals to ease the expected chaos around introducing inheritance tax on pension wealth, a professional services company said Monday.

  • August 04, 2025

    Accountancy Boss Denies Siphoning Funds During Exit Talks

    A businessman accused of wrongly extracting at least £850,000 ($1.1 million) from an accountancy has denied this was a conspiracy to harm the firm and claimed he was taking out money he considered at the time that he and his wife were owed.

  • August 04, 2025

    UBS To Pay DOJ $300M To Settle Inherited Credit Suisse Case

    Swiss bank UBS said Monday it has agreed to pay the U.S. Department of Justice $300 million to settle outstanding obligations inherited from the mortgage-backed securities business of Credit Suisse, the lender it acquired in 2023.

  • August 04, 2025

    Motor Finance Redress Scheme Could Reach £18B, FCA Says

    The Financial Conduct Authority has proposed a compensation program for motor finance customers after a landmark U.K. Supreme Court decision on Friday found signs that consumers were being treated unfairly, as the watchdog estimated that the cost could reach £18 billion ($24 billion).

  • August 02, 2025

    Supreme Court Car Finance Verdict Slashes Lender Exposure

    The U.K. Supreme Court's landmark decision Friday to reverse most of the Court of Appeal's judgment on hidden motor finance commissions has sharply narrowed the scope of any future redress scheme from the Financial Conduct Authority — an outcome critics said favored lenders and car dealers over consumer protection.

  • August 01, 2025

    Taxation With Representation: Skadden, Wachtell, Latham

    In this week's Taxation With Representation, Union Pacific Corp. and Norfolk Southern Corp. announce megamerger plans, Palo Alto Networks acquires identity security company CyberArk, Brookfield buys British life insurer Just Group, and Duke Energy sells its Piedmont Natural Gas Tennessee local distribution business to Spire Inc.

  • August 01, 2025

    Ex-AllSaints Chair In Contempt Over Share Sale Fraud Claims

    A London court ruled Friday that the former chairman of AllSaints was in contempt of court for breaching an order to stop claiming an interest in shares in the high street fashion chain after his fraud allegations were rejected.

  • August 01, 2025

    Gov't Fines UK Biz For Russia Sanctions Breach

    The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation has fined U.K.‑based business support services provider Markom Management Ltd. for violating financial sanctions tied to Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea.

  • August 01, 2025

    Barclays Adviser Wrongly Fired Over Sexual Remarks

    A former Barclays employee was unfairly dismissed for making sexual comments to female colleagues, but he could have been fairly dismissed for the same conduct, according to a Glasgow tribunal ruling.

  • August 01, 2025

    Top Court Hands Banks Partial Win Over Motor Finance Fees

    Car finance providers won a partial victory in a landmark case over commission payments on Friday when the U.K. Supreme Court ruled that they did not owe a duty to provide customers with information about the fees, potentially avoiding a multibillion-pound compensation scheme. 

  • August 01, 2025

    FCA Widens Crypto ETN Access To Boost Competitiveness

    The Financial Conduct Authority said Friday it will lift its ban on retail access to cryptocurrency exchange‑traded notes from Oct. 8, allowing individual investors to buy these products through U.K.‑listed trading venues.

  • August 01, 2025

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen several telco giants hit with a trademark claim, a collapsed hotel company sue a property investor in an ongoing dispute over a decades-old hotel sale, and two litigation funders square off against each other.

  • August 01, 2025

    Ogilvy & Wachtel-Led Investors Oppose Hedge Fund Merger

    A group of investors in Third Point told fellow shareholders in the hedge fund on Friday that the proposed merger with Malibu Life Reinsurance will establish "a dangerous precedent for the U.K. stock market" of not safeguarding interests of the minority.

  • August 01, 2025

    FCA Hits Brokerage With £1M Fine For Deal Report Failures

    The City watchdog said Friday that it has hit a global brokerage with a fine of more than £1 million ($1.3 million) for the "particularly serious" failure to submit complete and accurate transaction reports over a five-year period.

  • July 31, 2025

    Asset Freeze Sticks In Billionaire's $415M Fraud Case

    A London appeals court on Thursday upheld an asset freeze against a man accused of defrauding Ricardo Salinas Pliego out of more than $415 million, finding no reason to doubt the Mexican billionaire is "exceedingly wealthy" and able to compensate the other side if he ultimately loses his claim.

  • July 31, 2025

    Developer Denies Misusing Victims' Funds In £226M Fraud

    A developer convicted for running a £226 million ($299 million) Ponzi scheme denied treating overseas properties bought with his victims' money as his "pension fund" as he gave evidence in court Thursday.

Expert Analysis

  • FCA Savings Update Focuses On Good Customer Outcomes

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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.

  • What To Know About The UK Overseas Funds Regime

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    The U.K.’s overseas funds regime is now open for applications, providing a simplified way of offering a foreign fund to U.K. retail investors, and the Financial Conduct Authority's clear policy statement on implementation should ease the transition process from the existing scheme, say lawyers at Dechert.

  • Takeaways From SRA Consumer Protection Review

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    While the Solicitors Regulation Authority prepares to announce its findings later this year following its consumer protection consultation, the topic of handling client funds is very much alive in the legal industry, with polarizing views on what should happen as a result of the review, says Claire Van Der Zant at Shieldpay.

  • Reflecting On 12 Months Of The EU Foreign Subsidy Regime

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    New European Commission guidance, addressing procedural questions and finally providing clarity on “distortion” in merger control and public procurement, offers an opportunity to reflect on the year since foreign subsidy notification obligations were introduced, say lawyers at Fried Frank.

  • What Updated Guide Means For Jersey's Private Funds

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    The Jersey Financial Services Commission's recent updates to the Jersey Private Fund Guide clarify existing provisions and introduce new requirements for fund managers, service providers and investors, demonstrating a clear commitment to maintaining Jersey's reputation as an attractive jurisdiction for investment, say lawyers at Walkers Global.

  • The Road Ahead For Tokenized Investment Funds In The UK

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    With an HM Treasury working group expected to release the final phase of a road map for tokenized investment funds by the end of the year, Andrew Tsang and Tom Bacon at BCLP discuss the advantages for investors and fund administrators, the proposed model for implementation, and what the regulatory landscape may look like.

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