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Financial Services UK
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October 09, 2025
Dutch Gov't Summons Fund Suspected Of €200M Tax Evasion
Dutch prosecutors have summoned a foreign pension fund that they suspect evaded €200 million ($231 million) in taxes on dividends through fraudulent refund claims, the government said Thursday.
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October 16, 2025
Weil Hires 4 More Latham Private Equity Lawyers In Germany
Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP has appointed four more private equity lawyers for its practice in Germany, adding to its previous hires from Latham & Watkins LLP in a practice area where there is considerable lateral movement.
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October 09, 2025
Banks Warn Of Extra Hit Over Car Loan Finance Scandal
Lloyds and Close Brothers both warned on Thursday that they are reviewing whether they need to allocate extra cash to compensate U.K. motor finance customers, days after the City watchdog disclosed a planned redress program for the mis-selling scandal.
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October 09, 2025
Hargreaves Defends Keeping Woodford Fund On Wealth List
Hargreaves Lansdown has denied thousands of investors' claims that it failed to warn them of the poor performance of Neil Woodford's fund in the years running up to its collapse, saying its clients are responsible for making their own investment decisions.
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October 09, 2025
FSB Calls For Improvements In Cross-Border Payments
International efforts to streamline cross-border payments have improved incrementally, but the world is unlikely to meet ambitious 2027 goals for cost, speed and transparency, a global standards setter warned on Thursday.
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October 09, 2025
HSBC To Privatize Hang Seng Bank In $14B Deal
HSBC Holdings PLC said Thursday that it plans to pull Hang Seng Bank Ltd. from Hong Kong's stock exchange in a HK$106 billion ($13.6 billion) deal, as the British lender seeks to broaden its footprint in Asia.
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October 08, 2025
Senior Managers At Risk In FCA's £8B Motor Finance Plan
The Financial Conduct Authority's proposed £8.2 billion ($11 billion) car finance redress scheme would force senior managers of lenders to put their heads on the block by attesting that they have adequate systems to identify customers for compensation, with wrong decisions risking enforcement action by the regulator, lawyers have warned.
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October 08, 2025
Tobacco Co. Made Timely Tax Refund Claims, UK Court Rules
A British tobacco company didn't wait too long to seek repayment of taxes it mistakenly paid on foreign dividends, a U.K. appeals court ruled Wednesday, rejecting HM Revenue & Customs' contention that the claims were time-barred.
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October 08, 2025
Proxy Votes Suggest WH Ireland Deal May Fall Flat
WH Ireland said Wednesday that shareholders might not vote in favor of selling the business and some of its wealth management division assets for £1 million ($1.3 million) in cash.
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October 08, 2025
Tech Biz Says Former Exec Lied About CEO's Links To Russia
A technology company has accused a former executive in a London court of targeting its CEO with a smear campaign about his alleged ties to Russian special services and organized crime networks.
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October 08, 2025
Insurance Brokers Could Face FCA Scrutiny Over Commissions
Insurance brokers could be next to come under the regulator's microscope over how commission arrangements are structured, an expert has warned. Â
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October 08, 2025
'Finfluencers' Have To Wait Until 2027 For Trial
Three men charged with advertising unauthorized investment opportunities in foreign exchange markets on social media will have to wait at least until late 2027 for their trials, a London judge said Wednesday.
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October 08, 2025
Aegon Backs Financial Ombudsman Redress Reform
Aegon said Wednesday it "broadly" supports HM Treasury's proposed overhaul of the Financial Ombudsman Service, adding that reforms — if "carefully" implemented — could bring much-needed clarity and consistency to rulings on complaints in the U.K.
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October 08, 2025
Ex-Yellow Pages CFO Wins Costs In Baseless £1B Fraud Case
A London court has ruled that the former finance chief of Yellow Pages should have his costs covered in both criminal and review proceedings stemming from a private prosecutor's unfounded allegations that the boss oversaw a £1 billion ($1.3 billion) fraud.
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October 08, 2025
Brown & Brown Expands UK Reach With Medical Broker Buy
The European arm of Brown & Brown Inc. has bought British medical insurance broker All Medical Professionals Ltd. — its latest in a line of acquisitions of a U.K. insurer.
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October 08, 2025
Charity Gifts In Wills Hit £1B As Estates Swerve Tax Bills
The value of charitable gifts left in people's wills climbed to £980 million ($1.3 billion) in the last financial year to April, as more Britons used philanthropy to reduce inheritance tax bills, London law firm TWM Solicitors LLP said Wednesday.
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October 07, 2025
FCA Says Lenders Will Pay Out £8B For Motor Finance Scandal
The Financial Conduct Authority released a proposed industry-wide program under consultation on Tuesday to compensate motor finance customers treated unfairly between 2007 and 2024, which it estimates will pay out £8.2 billion ($11 billion) in redress.
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October 07, 2025
Nick Candy Admits Looking Stupid Over Alleged €5M Fraud
Property entrepreneur Nick Candy admitted that he "looks stupid" after being allegedly deceived by a dotcom-era investor into putting money in a failed social media startup, as he gave evidence on the first day of a €5 million ($5.8 million) trial.
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October 07, 2025
Dubai Financial Adviser Can't Get 'Citizen By Invitation' TM
European officials have rejected financial consultancy Arton Advisors Management Consultancy LLC's trademark application for the phrase "Citizenship by Invitation," ruling the mark is descriptive and lacks distinctiveness.
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October 07, 2025
EU Financial Firms Call For More Competitive Share Clearing
Europe's cash equities clearing system is ripe for further reform even as the region gears up for faster settlement cycles and greater capital-market integration, the trade body for financial institutions in the region warned on Tuesday.
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October 07, 2025
Quinn Client Fights To Shield Firm From Ex-Staffer's Abuse
A client of Quinn Emanuel asked a London appeals court on Tuesday to prevent a former employee from sending abusive messages to the firm's lawyers in a case that was set to test a novel area of law.Â
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October 07, 2025
US Consolidator Acquires London-Based Insurance Co.
Bishop Street Underwriters said Tuesday it has bought London-based managing general agent Avid Insurance Services Ltd., marking the American insurance company's second acquisition of a U.K. insurance business in 2025.
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October 07, 2025
KPMG Fined By FRC For 'Serious' Failings In Audit Of Retailer
The accounting watchdog said Tuesday that it has hit KPMG and one of its partners with a £711,000 ($952,000) fine for "serious" failings in an audit of an online retailer — the latest in a series of penalties imposed by the regulator.
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October 07, 2025
BoE Governor Backs Pension Plans To Boost UK Biz Growth
The governor of the Bank of England has said he is a "strong advocate" for plans by the Labour government to direct pension scheme capital toward British business, despite having warned against proposals that would mandate specific investments.
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October 06, 2025
SFO Stands By Ex-Deutsche Bank Trader's Fraud Conviction
The Serious Fraud Office said Monday that the conviction of a former Deutsche Bank AG trader for conspiring to rig a benchmark interest rate remains safe even after the U.K.'s highest court overturned similar cases of two former bankers earlier this year.
Expert Analysis
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What The Future Of AI In Financial Services Looks Like
Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the global financial services industry, with a hybrid model likely to evolve where AI handles routine tasks and humans focus on strategy and decision-making, so financial institutions should work with regulators to establish ethical standards and meet regulatory expectations without stifling innovation, say lawyers at Womble Bond.
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FCA Survey Results Reveal Rise In Nonfinancial Misconduct
After a Financial Conduct Authority survey recently reported a significant rise in nonfinancial misconduct, there are a number of preventive steps firms should take to create a healthy workplace environment and mitigate the risk of increased regulatory scrutiny, say lawyers at WilmerHale.
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When Investigating An Adversary, Be Wary Of Forged Records
Warnings against the use of investigators who tout their ability to find an adversary’s private documents generally emphasize the risk of illegal activity and attorney discipline, but a string of recent cases shows an additional danger — investigators might be fabricating records altogether, says Brian Asher at Asher Research.
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What UK Security Act Report Indicates For Future Gov't Policy
Following the recent publication of the National Security and Investment Act report on the scrutiny of proposed investments, it will be interesting to see how the act’s powers fit into a government policy that plans to cut regulatory obstacles, while maintaining a hard line on national security, say lawyers at Katten Muchin.
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Examining UK And EU Approaches To Sanctions Enforcement
In light of the Financial Conduct Authority’s recent £28.9 million fine of Starling Bank for its lax sanctions screening processes, businesses should understand both the U.K.’s and the European Union’s enforcement approaches, the larger sanctions landscape and the importance of cooperation, says Angelika Hellweger at Rahman Ravelli.
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Factors Driving EU Competition Policy For The Next 5 Years
Teresa Ribera RodrÃguez’s recent nomination as the new European Union commissioner for competition prompts questions about policy and enforcement, with goals to enhance competition in business, implement stronger and faster enforcement, and promote and fund decarbonization likely in her sights during a five-year term, say lawyers at Linklaters.
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What UK Procurement Act Delay Will Mean For Stakeholders
The Procurement Act 2023’s delay until February 2025 has sparked debate among contracting authorities and suppliers, and the Labour Party’s preference for a broader reform package demonstrates the challenges involved in implementing legislative changes where there is a change in government, say lawyers at Shoosmiths.
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How Energy Scheme Is Affecting Large Co. Fund Investment
The latest phase of the Department of Energy and Climate Change's Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme implicates funds with investments in large companies by establishing significant and complex changes to the reporting cycle for mandatory assessments, say lawyers at Macfarlanes.
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How Companies House Enforcement Powers Are Growing
Companies House's recently increased ability to assess what material is submitted to the U.K. register of companies, and to proportionately enforce where violations have occurred, may require some degree of cultural shift within many companies, say lawyers at Greenberg Traurig.
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How New Sanctions Office Will Affect UK Trade Landscape
The recent launch of the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation will help to create a more comprehensive civil enforcement terrain, but the potential for multiple investigations means businesses should reassess their systems to ensure they do not inadvertently incur civil liability, says Julia Pearce at Robertson Pugh.
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FCA Savings Update Focuses On Good Customer Outcomes
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.
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5 Takeaways From UK Justices' Arbitration Jurisdiction Ruling
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.
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FCA's Broad Proposals Aim To Protect Customer Funds
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.
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Takeaways From Upcoming Payment Fraud Delay Legislation
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.
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Modernizing UK Trade Settlement Standard: The Road Ahead
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.