Financial Services UK

  • February 11, 2025

    £5.5B Tax Evasion Could Be 'Tip Of Iceberg,' Watchdog Warns

    The £5.5 billion ($6.8 billion) annual cost of tax evasion drawn up by HM Revenue and Customs is probably "vastly underestimated" — and the authority has no plan to tackle the gap in the public purse, the government's spending watchdog warned Wednesday.

  • February 11, 2025

    Vacuum Or Trap? What Trump's FCPA Halt Means For SFO

    U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to stop enforcing bribery laws against American companies creates a potential vacuum for the Serious Fraud Office to fill, though lawyers caution that prosecuting U.S. companies could prove a political hazard for the U.K. enforcement agency.

  • February 11, 2025

    StanChart Bids To Slash £762M From UK Investor Claim

    Standard Chartered urged the High Court on Tuesday to strike out claims from passive investors worth £762 million ($943 million) in litigation accusing the bank of making untrue or misleading market statements about its sanctions noncompliance.

  • February 11, 2025

    Tribunal To Consider If FCA Has Equality Duty In Cum-Ex Row

    The U.K.'s Upper Tribunal will hold a preliminary hearing to decide whether the Financial Conduct Authority has a duty to not discriminate when it fined and banned a cum-ex trader from the industry, according to a tribunal decision published Tuesday.

  • February 11, 2025

    Barclays Sued Over Staffer's Alleged Role In $643K Fraud

    A Singaporean fire safety business has sued Barclays Bank PLC over an elaborate fraud that caused it to send $643,000, alleging that a bank employee was involved in the plot to dupe it into transferring funds to criminals.

  • February 11, 2025

    Procurement Biz Blocks Disclosure In Byju's $533M Debt Fight

    A London judge on Tuesday ruled it would be oppressive to force a U.K. procurement company to provide evidence related to an allegedly fraudulent $533 million transaction for Delaware court proceedings involving the bankrupt U.S. subsidiary of Indian educational tech firm Byju's.

  • February 11, 2025

    Audit Watchdog Signals More Support For Stewardship Code

    Britian's audit watchdog on Tuesday said there are now 297 companies signed up to its stewardship code as it looks to finalize the latest iteration of the regime for investors this year.

  • February 11, 2025

    PE Unit Defeats Investor In Fight Over Software Co. Stakes

    Wealthy investor Barry Maloney attempted to force a subsidiary of Intermediate Capital Group out of their joint investment in an Irish technology unicorn, in breach of his obligations to the U.S. private equity giant, a London court ruled on Tuesday.

  • February 11, 2025

    Pension Providers Step Up Illiquid Investments In UK

    The largest defined contribution pension providers are aiming to allocate up to 40% of their illiquid portfolios to U.K. assets, a consultancy said Monday, after years of pressure from the government to encourage more domestic investment in long-term projects.

  • February 11, 2025

    UniCredit Lifts Block On Gazprom Unit Claim To Avoid Penalty

    UniCredit Bank AG won its unusual fight to lift an injunction protecting it from a claim from a Gazprom subsidiary on Tuesday after it asked a London court to help it avoid a $250 million ($258 million) penalty from a Russian court.

  • February 11, 2025

    Gender Pension Gap Set To Keep Rising, Analysts Predict

    Some 23% of men aged 16 and above are actively contributing to their work-place defined contribution pension plans, compared with only 19% of women, a financial services consultancy said Tuesday, adding to fears that the retirement savings gap between the genders is growing.

  • February 11, 2025

    Pension Schemes 'Healthier' Since 2022 Bond Crisis

    More than half of the pension schemes in Britain are likely to "run on" because of improvements in funding since the liquidity crisis caused by a bond market crash three years ago, a professional services company has said.

  • February 10, 2025

    Yodel Denies Handing Investment Bank 10% Of Business

    Yodel has denied in court filings that it agreed to hand an investment bank a 10% stake in the business in return for the bank waiving £2.6 million ($3.2 million) in fees the logistics company allegedly owed for investment and financing services.

  • February 10, 2025

    Financier Bids To Resurrect HMRC Bungled Prosecution Claim

    A corporate financier sought permission Monday to challenge a decision to dismiss his claim against HM Revenue and Customs and the Crown Prosecution Service for wrongly prosecuting him, arguing that the judge had failed to properly consider the evidence.

  • February 10, 2025

    Gov't Prompted To Prioritize Fighting Economic Crime

    The U.K. government was urged by a financial services group on Monday to spend more on fighting economic crime and to require that tech companies contribute to fraud reimbursement.

  • February 10, 2025

    Pension Deal Adviser Isio Buys Rival Broking Specialist

    Pension advisory business Isio Group Ltd. has formally confirmed its acquisition of rival insurance and risk settlement specialist K3 Advisory Ltd. for an undisclosed fee.

  • February 10, 2025

    BoE Sets Out Pro-Growth Priorities For Finance Infrastructure

    The Bank of England this year will focus on regulating financial market infrastructures to help underpin growth, as it benefits from technology such as artificial intelligence, a senior BoE official said Monday.

  • February 10, 2025

    Ombudsman To Charge Claims Firms For Dispute Referrals

    The Financial Ombudsman Service has said that it will impose a charge on claims companies for referring disputes as it attempts to deal with a surging caseload.

  • February 07, 2025

    Pharmacy Chain Says Seller Inflated Value In £10M M&A Deal

    A Yorkshire-based pharmacy chain has brought a £9.9 million ($12.3 million) claim in a London court against the previous owners of a group of pharmacy companies it acquired, alleging they made dishonest statements about the group's finances.

  • February 07, 2025

    Quantum Computers 'Imminent Threat' To Data, Europol Says

    The financial sector faces an "imminent threat" that coded security measures to protect data could be broken by advanced computers and companies must start transitioning to more secure defenses now, a European Union law enforcement agency warned Friday.

  • February 07, 2025

    FCA Doubles Withdrawals, Changes To Misleading Ads In 2024

    The Financial Conduct Authority said Friday its interventions led to authorized businesses withdrawing or amending 19,766 misleading advertisements in 2024 — up from 10,008 the previous year.

  • February 07, 2025

    HSBC Seeks To Quash Discrimination, Whistleblowing Claim

    HSBC urged the Employment Tribunal on Friday to toss out a claim from a former compliance manager for disability discrimination, harassment and unfair dismissal against the bank, saying her claims had no real prospect of success and should not be allowed to move to a hearing.

  • February 07, 2025

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

    This past week in London has seen Investec Bank PLC sue two diamond tycoons, London florist Nikki Tibbles file a claim against an "imitator company," a direct descendant of the Cartier family launch a claim, and a Coronation Street actor hit footballer Joe Bunney with a defamation claim. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • February 07, 2025

    Investor Can Sue Trading Brokerage For $4M Debt In England

    An investor can bring claims against a Dubai-based trading brokerage in England, over her allegations that it sold its clients to a consultancy to avoid paying her the remainder of a $4.1 million debt, after a ruling by a London court on Friday.

  • February 07, 2025

    Danske Bank To Buy Back $695M Worth Of Shares

    Danske Bank said on Friday that it will reward shareholders with a share repurchase program of up to five billion Danish kroner ($695 million) as it reported a bumper annual pre-tax profit for 2024.

Expert Analysis

  • Nonfinancial Misconduct Lessons From Rail Worker's Win

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    While financial services firms wait for the Financial Conduct Authority’s final policy statement on nonfinancial misconduct, an Employment Tribunal’s recent award to a railroad worker targeted by a hostile human resources team provides guidance on developing even-handed and inclusive company policies, say attorneys at Shoosmiths.

  • Important Changes To Note In Accountant Ethics Code Update

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    The Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales' forthcoming code of ethics will bring a number of significant updates to raise standards within the profession, but also risks of professional indemnity claims that could lead to challenges for firms, say lawyers at RPC.

  • A Look At Collateralized Loan Obligations Post-Reform

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    The Financial Stability Board's recent report on global securitization reforms, analyzing resilience trends in the collateralized loan obligation market post-2008, suggests that, while risk retention rules have a limited impact on observable characteristics, other structural features play a significant role in ensuring risk alignment, says Kos Vavelidis at DLA Piper.

  • What EU Sustainable Category Proposals Will Mean For Funds

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    The European Union Platform on Sustainable Finance’s recent proposals to apply stricter product categorization standards for funds subject to the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation will assist retail investors in selecting sustainable products, and allow advisers to easily match their clients’ preferences, say lawyers at Debevoise.

  • What To Expect As CAT Considers Mastercard Settlement

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    It is expected that the Competition Appeal Tribunal will closely scrutinize the proposed collective settlement in Merricks v. Mastercard, including the role of the case’s litigation funder, as the CAT's past approach to such cases shows it does not treat the process as a rubber stamp exercise, say lawyers at BCLP.

  • Managing Transatlantic Antitrust Investigations And Litigation

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    As transatlantic competition regulators cooperate more closely and European antitrust investigations increasingly spark follow-up civil suits in the U.S., companies must understand how to simultaneously juggle high-stakes multigovernment investigations and manage the risks of expensive new claims across jurisdictions, say lawyers at Paul Weiss.

  • What 2025 Holds For UK, EU Restructuring And Insolvency

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    European Union and U.K. restructuring developments in 2024, with a new era of director accountability, the use of cramdown tools and the emergence of aggressive liability management exercises, mean greater consideration of creditors' interests and earlier engagement in restructuring discussions can be expected this year, says Inga West at Ashurst.

  • What To Know As EU Urges Outbound Investment Reviews

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    A recent European Commission recommendation urges European Union member states to review outbound investments in certain critical technologies sectors, but does not clarify the next steps for states once information on relevant transactions in third countries is received, say lawyers at Cleary.

  • Despite Divisive Political Rhetoric, DEI Is Alive And Well

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    ​The World Economic Forum's recent finding that DEI initiatives have continued to rise amid political headwinds raises the question of whether reports of the death of DEI are exaggerated, especially as employers must focus on new pay gap reporting obligations in the U.K. and Europe, say lawyers at Herbert Smith Freehills.

  • How GCs Can Protect Cos. From Geopolitical Headwinds

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    Geopolitical uncertainty is perceived by corporate leaders as the biggest short-term threat to global business, but many of the potential crises are navigable if general counsel focus on what is being said about a company and what the company is doing, says Juliet Young at Schillings.

  • Navigating PRA's Data Request For Crypto-Asset Exposure

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    The Prudential Regulation Authority’s recent data request for details on financial institutions' crypto-asset exposures should be used as an opportunity for firms to update their compliance procedures, and consider the future use of crypto-assets and related services, says James Wickes at RPC.

  • Key Points From FCA Financial Crime Guide Updates

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    The Financial Conduct Authority’s recent updates to its financial crime guide reflect the regulator’s learnings on sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, highlighting and clarifying consumer duty, anti-money laundering and other compliance expectations, say lawyers at Womble Bond.

  • Tax Directive Marks Milestone In Harmonizing EU System

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    The Council of the European Union’s recently adopted tax directive is a significant step toward streamlining and modernizing procedures for member states, and will greatly reduce administrative burden and compliance costs for cross-border investors, says Martin Phelan at Simmons & Simmons.

  • Why Nonfinancial Misconduct Should Be On Firms' Radar

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    Following a recent Financial Conduct Authority survey showing an increase in nonfinancial misconduct, the regulator has made clear that it expects firms to have systems in place to identify and mitigate risks, says Charlotte Pope-Williams at 3 Hare Court.

  • What New UK Code Of Conduct Will Mean For Directors

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    The Institute of Directors’ new voluntary code of conduct is intended to help directors make better decisions and enable U.K. businesses to win back eroded public trust, although, with no formal means of enforcement, its effectiveness could be limited, says Sarah Turner at Eversheds Sutherland.

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