The U.K. government has published its much-anticipated proposals for regulating the cryptoasset industry. These proposals, currently in the form of a consultation, will see many (but not all) cryptoasset-related activities...more
The Bank of England has published a joint consultation paper with HM Treasury on the possibility of a digital pound in the U.K. It is envisaged that the digital pound would be a retail central bank digital currency, to be...more
A detailed set of amendments to the Financial Services and Markets Bill (FSMB) were tabled by Lord Lilley on 23 January 2023, promoting enhanced accountability for the U.K.’s financial regulators.[1] These comprise the result...more
The U.K. Government announced on 9 December 2022 a series of initiatives, billed as the Edinburgh Reforms, to reform the laws for the U.K. financial services sector. In this note, we consider these reforms in detail and what...more
12/21/2022
/ Banking Sector ,
Cryptoassets ,
Digital Assets ,
EU ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
The International Organization of Securities Commissions has published a consultation on Compliance Carbon Markets and a separate discussion paper on voluntary carbon markets. Compliance Carbon Markets involve the issuance of...more
Following its 2021 Discussion Paper, the FCA has published a consultation paper setting out proposals to enhance sustainability disclosure and labeling requirements for sustainability-linked investment products. The majority...more
The U.K. Government has published the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill, known as the Brexit Freedoms Bill, which aims to repeal or assimilate retained EU law and abolish the principle of the supremacy of EU law in...more
Innovate Finance and Shearman & Sterling has submitted a comprehensive evidence paper to the House of Commons Treasury Committee inquiry into crypto-assets.
Analysis produced by Innovate Finance specially for the...more
10/6/2022
/ Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Instruments ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
HM Treasury ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
UK
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has published a consultation paper on proposed guidance on the regulatory perimeter for multilateral trading facilities and on possible future changes to smaller trading venues' regulatory...more
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has published its final rules and guidance for the new Consumer Duty, which is intended to establish clearer standards for consumer protection across the financial services industry. The...more
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has published a Policy Statement and final rules on improvements to the Appointed Representatives regime. The AR regime allows authorized firms to appoint representatives to conduct...more
HM Treasury has launched an inquiry into the role of crypto-assets in the U.K. and their regulatory framework. The inquiry poses questions on a range of subjects, including the likelihood of digital currencies (e.g.,...more
The U.K. Jurisdiction Taskforce has published a consultation on the issuance and transfer of "digital securities" under English law. Digital securities are shares, bonds and other debt securities which are constituted by...more
Since late February 2022, the United States (U.S.), the European Union (EU) and its member states, the United Kingdom (U.K.), and many others—including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Canada—have imposed sweeping...more
8/11/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Belarus ,
Blocking Sanctions ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Technology Sector ,
Trade Relations ,
Trade Suspensions ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
UK ,
Ukraine
The recently published Financial Services and Markets Bill (FSM Bill) is intended to recast the U.K.’s regulatory architecture post-Brexit. It was introduced to Parliament on 20 July 2022. The Bill implements the outcomes of...more
8/2/2022
/ Commodities ,
Derivatives ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services and Markets Act ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HM Treasury ,
New Legislation ,
Stablecoins ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
The U.K. Government has published the U.K. Infrastructure Bill, a piece of legislation designed to put the U.K. Infrastructure Bank on a statutory footing. The Bank was launched in interim form in June 2021 as part of the...more
The U.K. Payment Systems Regulator Panel has published a report on its Digital Payments Initiative, which investigated potential barriers to the take-up of digital payments and possible solutions. The Panel advises the PSR on...more
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has made three appointments to its senior leadership team -
Mel Gunewardena has been appointed to Senior Advisor, and will join the FCA from his role as Chief Market Intelligence...more
HM Treasury has published a Policy Statement on its plans for protecting the U.K.'s wholesale cash infrastructure. In recent years, use of cash has diminished in favour of cashless transactions but the U.K. government is...more
Since late February 2022, the United States (U.S.), the European Union (EU) and its member states, the United Kingdom (U.K.), and many others — including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Canada — have imposed...more
4/28/2022
/ Australia ,
Canada ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Japan ,
Military Conflict ,
New Zealand ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
Taiwan ,
UK ,
Ukraine ,
Vladimir Putin
The International Organization of Securities Commissions is seeking feedback on two IOSCO reports: the first on drivers of liquidity in corporate bond markets during COVID-19 induced market stresses and the second on good...more
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has made three new appointments...more
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, Prudential Regulation Authority and Bank of England have published a joint statement on the London Metal Exchange's suspension of nickel trading between March 8-16, 2022. Trading was...more
The FCA has announced that Sberbank CIB (UK) Limited, the U.K. arm of Sberbank's corporate and investment banking division, has entered special administration. The firm has found itself unable to make payments due to the...more
Since late February 2022, the United States (U.S.), the European Union (EU) and its member states, the United Kingdom (U.K.), and many others—including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Canada—have imposed sweeping...more
3/23/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Canada ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
UK ,
Ukraine