Background On 4 September 2023, the UK House of Commons debated the House of Lords’ amendments to the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill (the Bill). The House of Commons voted to include an exemption for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and remove the extension of the proposed offence to failure to prevent money laundering. … Continue Reading
In our latest Regulation Tomorrow Plus podcast, Senior Knowledge Lawyer Catherine Pluck is joined by London Financial Services partners Jonathan Herbst and Katie Stephen, who discuss some recent regulatory developments in relation to culture, as well as some practical steps that firms can be taking in this area. The podcast can be found here.… Continue Reading
Three recent cases act as a reminder that the CPS, HMRC and NCA, as well as the SFO, are actively enforcing the UK Bribery Act and conducting cross-border investigations. Two of the cases summarised below also show a focus on the demand side of bribery (i.e. suspected offences of individuals receiving or requesting a bribe … Continue Reading
Summary There has been a recent trend of greater regulatory enforcement for international companies that “carry on a business (or part of a business) in the UK”. We have set out in this article the relevant UK legislation and authorities that can enforce against international companies, with a particular focus on how these may apply … Continue Reading
Two years ago the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) committed to being a more “innovative, assertive and adaptive regulator” and its focus on quicker and assertive supervisory action, alongside tougher enforcement, has been a consistent message from the regulator ever since. In a climate where firms are expected to manage hugely significant regime changes, combined with … Continue Reading
On 6 July 2023, the Bank of England (BoE) published its latest annual report on the Prescribed Persons (Reports on Disclosures of Information) Regulations 2017. The BoE, of which the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) forms a part, are both Prescribed Persons, as defined by Parliament under the Public Interest Disclosures (Prescribed Persons) Order 2014. The … Continue Reading
The UK Parliament is in the process of debating the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill (the Bill), which is expected to be finalised by the end of the year and come into force during 2024. There has been much discussion of the new failure to prevent fraud offence (for more detail see our article … Continue Reading
The FCA has recently published a Decision Notice in respect of Banque Havilland SA (Banque Havilland) in which the FCA found that Banque Havilland acted without integrity in breach of Principle 1 of the FCA’s Principles of Business in producing and disseminating to an employee of an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund a presentation which … Continue Reading
On 21 June 2023, the Bank of England (BoE) published a speech by Oliver Dearie, its Head of Enforcement and Litigation, on the BoE’s approach to enforcement. In his speech, delivered at the Financial Services Lawyers Association, Mr Dearie explains the rationale behind the changes proposed in the BoE’s recent consultation paper on enforcement (CP9/23). … Continue Reading
On 12 May 2023, the FCA publicly censured the financial advisory firm, Lighthouse, for providing unsuitable advice to customers to transfer out of occupational defined benefit pension schemes, including the British Steel Pension Scheme (the BSP Scheme). The FCA found that Lighthouse breached Principle 9 (a firm must take reasonable care to ensure the suitability … Continue Reading
The Government has proposed radical reforms to corporate criminal liability for the first time in more than 50 years by making it easier to prosecute companies for economic crime offences committed by their senior employees. The amendment to the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill (the Bill) would replace the common law “directing mind and … Continue Reading
As anticipated in our previous blog post on predictions for 2023, this year has brought about significant developments in investigations and a real focus on fraud. Looking ahead to the second half of 2023, we predict that developments affecting UK business or those doing business in the UK will include: 1. Fraud Economic Crime and … Continue Reading
Following consultations, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has updated its approach to the way it issues financial penalties for proven misconduct. Changes introduced by the SRA include: The new regime came into force on 1 June 2023 and the SRA states that the changes it has made will help it to resolve cases “as quickly … Continue Reading
Background ClientEarth, an environmental charity that seeks to bring legal challenges in respect of entities that it considers have not discharged their environmental responsibilities, has failed in its attempt to judicially review a decision of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to approve the prospectus of a UK oil and gas company, Ithaca Energy plc (Ithaca). … Continue Reading
On 1 June 2023, the FCA published a speech given by Therese Chambers entitled “Do the right thing”, her first as Co-Executive Director of Enforcement. Ms Chambers took up the Co-Executive Director role in April of this year, although she has been at the FCA and its predecessor, the FSA, for the best part of … Continue Reading
Following publication of the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) latest 3-Year Plan for 2023-26, in our latest briefing we consider the potential impact of FRC stated enforcement strategy and likely increased ‘constructive engagement’ and enforcement activity that companies can expect to see over the coming period, with additional experienced resource within the FRC focusing on issues … Continue Reading
In March 2023, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) published the results of its latest in-house solicitors thematic review, having seen a significant increase in those practising in-house. In our latest briefing note, we set out a summary of the SRA’s key findings and the next steps recommended by the SRA to address identified areas of … Continue Reading
Inadequate governance is regularly cited by regulators as a factor which has contributed to the failings of firms. From small firms to international global organisations, governance is worth investing in with a view to avoiding common pitfalls and wider issues. In this briefing note we set out some practical tips that firms may want to … Continue Reading
Our latest episode of Regulation Tomorrow Plus is now available and can be found here. In this podcast, Senior Knowledge Lawyer Catherine Pluck is joined by Counsel Joe Smallshaw and Associate Lizzie Cox, both of whom specialise in regulatory investigations and enforcement, to discuss some of the key themes arising from the UK Financial Conduct … Continue Reading
Whistleblowing remains a key tool for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to identify actual or potential harm to consumers, markets, the UK economy and wider society. On 4 May 2023, it published its latest whistleblowing data for the final quarter of 2022 (for the months October to December 2022) (Q4 2022). During this quarter, the … Continue Reading
On 4 May 2023, the Bank of England (BoE) published Consultation Paper 9/23 ‘The Bank of England’s approach to enforcement: proposed changes and clarifications’ (CP9/23). CP9/23 proposes changes to the BoE’s and the Prudential Regulation Authority’s (PRA) enforcement policies and procedures, to the PRA’s policies and procedures for making supervisory and non-enforcement statutory notice decisions, … Continue Reading
On 4 May 2023, the FCA published the findings from the whistleblowing qualitative assessment survey it carried out in 2022. Following information received via the survey, the FCA has set out actions to improve the confidence of whistleblowers, which includes the following: The FCA was disappointed to see the dissatisfaction expressed by many survey respondents. … Continue Reading
On 13 April 2023, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) fined the former Chief Information Officer (CIO) of TSB Bank plc (TSB), Carlos Abarca, £81,620 for failing to take reasonable steps to ensure that TSB adequately managed and supervised appropriately its outsourcing arrangements in relation to its 2018 IT migration programme in breach of PRA Senior Manager Conduct … Continue Reading
Identifying and preventing greenwashing is a growing priority for regulators around the world. In the UK, there are a number of regulators active in this space, including not only the financial services regulators such as the Financial Conduct Authority, but also the Advertising Standards Authority, the Competition and Markets Authority and the Financial Reporting Council. … Continue Reading
