On June 30, 2021, President Biden signed S. J. Res. 15, which had been passed by the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, pursuant to the Congressional Review Act (the “CRA”), to nullify the Trump Administration’s “True Lender” final rule (the “True Lender Rule”). Under the CRA, the US Congress has a limited period of … Continue Reading
Global and US financial services regulators are increasing their warnings on the impending end to the use of the London Interbank Offering Rate (LIBOR) as a reference rate in financial contracts and the risk to the global financial system if there is inadequate preparation by financial institutions. Most LIBOR settings are ending this year, with … Continue Reading
Once relegated to the fringe of the crypto/FinTech communities, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have recently exploded to the forefront of modern pop culture and are taking on an ever increasing number of forms—from collectible digital kittens, to sport highlights, to music albums, to pieces of art auctioned off by Christie’s for US $69.3 million. But what, … Continue Reading
Following up on our past posts on the transition away from the use of the London Interbank Offering Rate (“LIBOR”) as a reference rate, recently, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB) issued a letter setting forth guidance for FRB examiners to assist in their assessment of the progress of FRB-supervised firms … Continue Reading
2021 Financial crime Outlook series Senior management and boards are increasingly acknowledging the threat of financial crime as a critical risk to their business that must be addressed. This has been exacerbated in the last 12 months through the impact of the pandemic as well as rising domestic and international tensions. Our financial crime compliance … Continue Reading
On April 6, 2021, New York Governor Mario Cuomo signed into law legislation tackling the uncertainties surrounding the LIBOR transition, particularly for legacy contracts. The new law amends the New York State General Obligations Law by adding a new Article 18-C, and is limited to contracts governed by New York law that are either silent … Continue Reading
The National Defense Authorization Act became law on January 1, 2021, after the U.S. Congress overrode a presidential veto. Division F of the Act is the “Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020” (AMLA). In her latest The New York Law Journal column, “ AML Act of 2020: Topics of interest for international banks,” Kathleen Scott, Senior … Continue Reading
2021 Financial Crime Outlook Series Senior management and boards are increasingly acknowledging the threat of financial crime as a critical risk to their business that must be addressed. This has been exacerbated in the last 12 months through the impact of the pandemic as well as rising domestic and international tensions. Our financial crime compliance … Continue Reading
On March 15, 2020, Allison Lee, Acting Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), delivered comments at the Center for American Progress via webcast, announcing the opening of a comment period regarding climate change disclosures. The submissions are to be used in developing future guidance and proposals on ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) issues. … Continue Reading
On March 3, 2021, the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) announced a Consent Order with a NYDFS-licensed Maine-based mortgage banker and loan servicer settling alleged violations of the NYDFS cybersecurity regulations. (In the matter of Residential Mortgage Services, Inc., March 3, 2021). As a result of the regular safety and soundness examination of … Continue Reading
2021 Financial crime Outlook series Senior management and boards are increasingly acknowledging the threat of financial crime as a critical risk to their business that must be addressed. This has been exacerbated in the last 12 months through the impact of the pandemic as well as rising domestic and international tensions. Our financial crime compliance … Continue Reading
On Friday, March 5, 2021, the US Alternative Reference Rates Committee (ARRC), the group of private sector and government agencies working on alternatives to the end of the use of LIBOR, issued a press release commending the issuances by ICE Benchmark Administration (IBA), the LIBOR administrator, and the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), confirming that … Continue Reading
2021 Financial crime Outlook series Senior management and boards are increasingly acknowledging the threat of financial crime as a critical risk to their business that must be addressed. This has been exacerbated in the last 12 months through the impact of the pandemic as well as rising domestic and international tensions. Our financial crime compliance … Continue Reading
Senior management and boards are increasingly acknowledging the threat of financial crime as a critical risk to their business that must be addressed. This has been exacerbated in the last 12 months through the impact of the pandemic as well as rising domestic and international tensions. Our financial crime compliance specialists, located in the UK, … Continue Reading
On December 23, 2020, New York Governor Mario Cuomo signed legislation adding a new Article 8 to the Financial Services Law, “Commercial Financing,” that requires nonbank commercial loan providers to make disclosures to small business borrowers. The law applies only to loans of $500,000 or less. The commercial lending to which the new law pertains … Continue Reading
In 2020, several federal regulatory changes affected banking organizations, such as the finalization of the long-awaited Federal Reserve Board “control” regulations and the revision of the “covered funds” prong of the Volcker Rule. But, what is ahead for 2021 in the regulatory sphere for banking organizations? In her latest New York Law Journal column, “International … Continue Reading
Senior management and boards are increasingly acknowledging the threat of financial crime as a critical risk to their business that must be addressed. This has been exacerbated in the last 12 months through the impact of the pandemic as well as rising domestic and international tensions. Norton Rose Fulbright’s financial crime compliance specialists, located in … Continue Reading
The National Defense Authorization Act was enacted on January 1, 2021, after the US Senate joined the House of Representatives in overriding a presidential veto of the bill. In addition to authorizing appropriations for the Department of Defense, the new law also contains several provisions designed to improve policies and procedures aimed at policing money … Continue Reading
On December 16, 2020, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) announced that it had adopted final rules requiring resource extraction issuers to disclose payments to governments related to the commercial development of oil, natural gas or minerals (the Rules). The Rules implement Section 13(q) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which … Continue Reading
Senior management and boards are increasingly acknowledging the threat of financial crime as a critical risk to their business that must be addressed. This has been exacerbated in the last 12 months through the impact of the pandemic as well as rising domestic and international tensions. Norton Rose Fulbright’s financial crime compliance specialists, located in … Continue Reading
On December 18, 2020, the US Department of the Treasury (Office of the Comptroller of the Currency), Federal Reserve Board and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) jointly announced a 53-page proposed rule that would require banks to notify their regulators within 36 hours of a “computer-security incident” that rises to the level of a “notification … Continue Reading
The National Defense Authorization Act was enacted on January 1, 2021, after the Senate joined the House in overriding President Trump’s veto of the bill. In addition to authorizing appropriations for the Department of Defense, the new law also contains several provisions designed to improve policies and procedures aimed at policing money laundering and terrorism … Continue Reading
When banks and certain other financial institutions open accounts for entities, among other anti-money laundering (AML) customer identification requirements, they must obtain beneficial ownership information on individuals owning 25% or more of the entity and a person with significant control over the entity such as a president or chief executive officer. We have published several … Continue Reading
In a December 9, 2020, letter, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) extended its no-action relief to broker-dealers in securities (“broker-dealers”) that wish to rely on investment advisers to perform the broker-dealer’s obligations under US federal anti-money laundering (“AML”) customer identification program and beneficial owner identification regulations. First provided in 2004 regarding customer identification … Continue Reading
