Corporate Crime & Compliance UK

  • 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

    Chinese State-Owned Firm Must Sell UK Semiconductor Stake

    A London court has rejected a Chinese state-owned investment company's bid for interim relief against an order to sell its stake in a British semiconductor business over national security concerns.

  • 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

    Blowback From Name And Shame Plan Hurts FCA Credibility

    An embarrassing rebuke for the City watchdog's controversial proposal to "name and shame" companies under investigation for financial misconduct at an early stage has undermined its regulatory credibility as well as efforts to boost London's competitiveness as a financial center.

  • February 06, 2025

    Woman In Spy Trial Denies Knowledge Of 'Honey Trap' Plot

    A woman accused of spying for Russia told a criminal court Thursday that she did not know that her paymasters intended to use her as a "honey trap" to seduce an investigative journalist and Kremlin critic.

  • February 06, 2025

    Allianz UK Detects £157M 'Record' Level Of Fraud In 2024

    Allianz UK on Thursday said it uncovered a total of £157.24 million ($195.94 million) worth of insurance fraud in 2024 — a 10% year-on-year increase in part driven by the rising cost of living increasing the number of consumers turning to scams.

  • February 06, 2025

    Visas Driving Migrant Labor Abuse, UK Watchdog Warns

    Sponsored visa schemes are the most likely cause of a rise in labor exploitation, the U.K.'s equality watchdog has said in a report to the United Nations.

  • February 06, 2025

    Stellantis Companies Can't Bring Cartel Claim In England

    Maserati and other car manufacturers had their cartel claim against auto parts makers in England struck out by a London court that ruled that issuing the proceedings in the country was a "deliberate litigation strategy" to prove their case.

  • February 06, 2025

    Wine Biz CFO Fights US Extradition Over Alleged $99M Fraud

    A wine company's former chief financial officer accused of cheating investors out of $99 million by persuading them to make interest-bearing loans using valuable wine collections as collateral urged a London judge Thursday to overturn a decision to allow his extradition to the United States.

  • February 06, 2025

    Mastercard Deal Battle Goes Through The Looking Glass

    The landmark class action brought by Walter Merricks against Mastercard has entered "Alice in Wonderland" territory, as the credit card giant is now backing the class representative who sued it in his dispute with his litigation funder over the terms of the controversial settlement, analysts say.

  • February 06, 2025

    FCA Rejects Complaints On Handling Of Blackmore Collapse

    The Financial Conduct Authority said Thursday that it has written to thousands of investors to reject complaints about how it handled the case of Blackmore Bond PLC, a minibonds provider that collapsed in 2021, but has agreed to pay them compensation for its slow response.

  • February 05, 2025

    FCA Told To Shelve Controversial Investigation Plans

    The Financial Conduct Authority should not go ahead with controversial plans to name firms under investigation at an earlier stage unless it can ensure the proposals sufficiently balance increased transparency and managing the potential risks to firms, a House of Lords committee said Thursday.

  • February 05, 2025

    EU Guidance Clarifies AI Rules, But Key Concepts Lack Detail

    Lawyers broadly welcomed the European Commission's belated guidance on newly enforced laws banning so-called artificial intelligence systems that pose an unacceptable risk Wednesday, but are wary of provisions regarding how AI providers should crack down on the prohibited use of their systems.

  • February 05, 2025

    Naomi Campbell Wins Shot To Fight Charity Trustee Ban

    Supermodel Naomi Campbell has been granted permission to challenge a decision by the U.K.'s charity watchdog banning her as a charity trustee after she claimed that her fellow trustee had impersonated her in correspondence with lawyers.

  • February 05, 2025

    UK Gov't Data Shows Rise In Legal Sector Data Breaches

    Data breaches in the U.K. legal sector have increased by more than a third, impacting 7.9 million individuals in the 12 months that ended July 1, 2024, according to an analysis released Wednesday of U.K. Information Commissioner's Office data by document and email management company NetDocuments.

  • February 05, 2025

    Directors Banned For Misleading Student Housing Investors

    The U.K.'s Insolvency Service has banned three men as company directors for misleading investors who had put over £4 million ($5 million) into a student housing development but were left uncompensated when the development companies became insolvent.

  • February 05, 2025

    EU Sets Out Actions For E-Commerce Import Rules

    The European Commission said Wednesday it is raising customs controls on low-value imports flowing into the European Union via online retailers and marketplaces hosting non-European traders.

  • February 05, 2025

    Insurers Say Stranded Jets Not Covered By War Risks Policies

    War-risk insurers argued Wednesday that they should not have to cover losses of aircraft stranded in Russia after the invasion of Ukraine, arguing airlines retaining the aircraft were not covered by the leasing airlines' insurance policy.

  • February 05, 2025

    Tycoon Can Redo Confiscation Fight After Fraud Conviction

    A businessman imprisoned for eight years for failing to repay £4.5 million ($5.6 million) following a conviction for fraud can re-argue his case after the Court of Appeal said Wednesday that there is new evidence he might be serving longer than necessary.

  • February 05, 2025

    Guarantors Fight To Stay Russian Boat Lessor's $60M Claim

    A group of Cypriot businesses that acted as guarantors for a ship financing deal with a Russian state-owned lessor that soured after the country's invasion of Ukraine have asked a London court to stay the Russian businesses' $60 million claims against them.

  • February 05, 2025

    Construction Industry Insiders Get Prison For £22M Tax Fraud

    A group of seven construction industry insiders has been sentenced to between nine years and four months and two years in prison for their roles in a tax fraud in which an estimated £22 million ($28 million) was hidden from the U.K. tax authorities. 

  • February 04, 2025

    Israeli Bids To Block US Extradition Over Prison Conditions

    An Israeli private investigator accused of hacking environment activists to help Exxon Mobil Corp. undermine climate-change litigation argued in court Tuesday that his extradition to the U.S. should be blocked due to "inhumane treatment" in New York prisons.

  • February 04, 2025

    Whistleblowing Failures Cost Gov't £426M, Report Finds

    Failing to heed whistleblowers contributed to three major scandals that cost the U.K. government over £426 million ($529 million), a whistleblowing charity said in a report Tuesday as it demanded urgent reforms.

  • February 04, 2025

    UniCredit Bids To Undo Ruling Blocking Gazprom Unit's Claim

    UniCredit Bank AG urged an appeals court Tuesday to overturn an order blocking a Gazprom joint venture from bringing a €450 million ($467 million) claim against it in Russia under bond guarantees linked to an aborted gas plant project.

Expert Analysis

  • Takeaways On Freezing Injunctions After Dos Santos Ruling

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    The Court of Appeal's recent decision in dos Santos v. Unitel moved the needle in favor of applicants for freezing injunctions in two ways, say lawyers at Cooke Young.

  • What To Know About New Art Market Reporting Obligations

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    Recent U.K. sanctions reporting obligations on art market participants and high value dealers come into effect in May 2025, and businesses should review risk assessments and compliance controls to identify areas that may require strengthening, say lawyers at Steptoe.

  • Businesses Should Expect A Role In Tackling Fraud Next Year

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    If one word sums up a key trend in financial crime enforcement in 2024, it would be fraud, as enforcement agencies clamped down on consumer-focused crime — and businesses will need to be prepared to play a part in 2025 with the coming of the "failure to prevent fraud" offense, says Jessica Parker at Corker Binning.

  • What FCA's 2024 Changes Suggest For Enforcement In 2025

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    Though the Financial Conduct Authority is likely to enter 2025 hungry for enforcement wins after fielding intense criticism in 2024 over proposed policy amendments, firms can glean ideas for mitigating their risk from heightened scrutiny by studying the regulator's changing behavior from the year just past, says Imogen Makin at WilmerHale.

  • How The Wirecard Judge Addressed Unreliability Of Memory

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    In a case brought by the administrator of Wirecard against Greybull Capital, High Court Judge Sara Cockerill took a multipronged and thoughtful approach to a common problem with fraudulent misrepresentation claims — how to assess the evidence of what was said at a meeting where recollections differ and where contemporaneous documentation is limited, says Andrew Head at Forsters.

  • Practical Considerations For Private Fund Side Letters

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    Side letters are a common way of formalizing negotiated arrangements between a private fund and a particular investor — and as the number and length of side letters per fundraise steadily climb, managers must consider the material legal risks carefully, say lawyers at Dechert.

  • Planning For UK And EU Crypto-Asset Regulations In 2025

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    Fims should expect to devote the rest of 2024 and much of 2025 to fine-tuning their compliance frameworks to align with European Union crypto-asset regulations taking effect soon and U.K. regulators' plans for updating their own crypto-asset regime in the coming year, says Steven Lightstone at Morgan Lewis.

  • What To Know About Plans For A UK Green Taxonomy

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    Rachel Richardson at Macfarlanes discusses the purpose of HM Treasury’s recent consultation on a U.K. green taxonomy, explains why the tool — which would define what economic activities support climate objectives — is necessary, and considers drafting challenges the U.K. government may face.

  • Key Takeaways From EU's Coming Digital Act

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    The European Union's impending Digital Operational Resilience Act will necessitate closer collaboration on resilience, risk management and compliance, and crucial challenges include ensuring IT third-party service providers meet the requirements on or before January 2025, says Susie MacKenzie at Coralytics.

  • Takeaways From EU's Draft AI Code Of Practice

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    The European Union AI Office’s recently published first draft of the General-Purpose AI Code of Practice sheds some welcome light on which Artificial Intelligence Act compliance issues the office finds particularly knotty and, importantly, acknowledges where further guidance will be necessary, say lawyers at Akin.

  • The Rising Tide Of EU Antitrust Enforcement In Pharma

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    The European Commission’s recent record-breaking €463 million fine of Teva for abusing its dominant position confirms that European Union competition law enforcement in the pharmaceutical sector remains a priority, with infringements drawing serious financial exposure, say lawyers at Cooley.

  • Looking Back On 2024's Competition Law Issues For GenAI

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    With inherent uncertainties in generative artificial intelligence raising antitrust issues that attract competition authorities' attention, the 2024 uptick in transaction reviews demonstrates that regulators are vigilant about the possibility that markets may tip in favor of large existing players, say lawyers at McDermott.

  • UK Bill Aims To Make Better Use Of Data Across Economy

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    The new Data Bill’s practical improvements to data schemes and certification systems will be welcomed by online service providers, but organizations need to consider the conditions and whether compliance will entail technical operational changes, say lawyers at Osborne Clarke.

  • The EU AI Act's Impact On Global Financial Regulation

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    The European Union’s new Artificial Intelligence Act, representing lawmakers’ first comprehensive attempt to regulate AI and giving special attention to the financial services sector, hopes to influence global legal and regulatory frameworks to maintain access to the EU market, say lawyers at Goodwin.

  • Cross Market Drill Highlights Operational Resilience Priorities

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    The U.K.’s recent cross-market major infrastructure failure simulation exercise, demonstrates that operational resilience of the financial sector is high on the regulatory agenda, and the findings should ensure that the sector develops collective capabilities to deliver improvements, say lawyers at Taylor Wessing.

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