We recently hosted an event as part of our Sustainable Transition seminar series titled “Tax incentives for sustainable investments: where are the opportunities?”. In this article, our panellists set out some of the key...more
The European Commission (EC)’s third annual report on EU foreign direct investment (FDI) screening covers the operation of the screening mechanism in 2022. Together with a Commission Staff Working Document, it details...more
The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published its final Green Agreements Guidance on how UK antitrust rules apply to green cooperation agreements between competitors (UK Green Guidance).
The UK Green Guidance...more
10/19/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Climate Change ,
Competition ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
New Guidance ,
Popular ,
Sustainability ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The EU Regulation establishing a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) is designed to drive businesses to achieve a true global reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions instead of relocating carbon-intensive production...more
10/3/2023
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Change ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Importers ,
International Trade ,
New Regulations ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Taxation
Until now, however, no comprehensive estimate existed of the of that opportunity, (or, to put it another way, the size of the financing gap between committed spending and the investment needed to deliver Net Zero by 2050...more
9/25/2023
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
EU ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
Investment ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Net Zero ,
Paris Agreement ,
Private Investment Funds ,
Renewable Energy ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK
The Commission has launched a far reaching consultation and review of SFDR, long expected by the industry. This bulletin provides an overview, as well as giving thought as to what we might see in terms of SFDR 2.0....more
9/25/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Investment ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Regulatory Reform ,
SFDR ,
Sustainable Finance ,
Taxonomy ,
UK
Three decisions in recent weeks have demonstrated the breadth of the UK Government’s sanctions-related powers and underline a push by the UK to demonstrate the robustness of its sanctions and a focus on their enforcement....more
9/8/2023
/ Asset Freeze ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HMRC ,
Russia ,
Trade Relations ,
UK
There are useful takeaways for EU and non-EU firms arising from the European Supervisory Authorities’ (ESA) latest thinking on greenwashing. In June 2023, the ESAs issued progress reports examining greenwashing risks and...more
7/27/2023
/ EIOPA ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Banking Authority (EBA) ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) ,
Greenwashing ,
Insurance Industry ,
SFDR ,
Sustainable Finance ,
Taxonomy
Following negotiations with the United States, the Netherlands in January 2023 agreed to impose controls on the export of certain semiconductors and related products to China....more
G7 governments continue to seek ways to increase the effectiveness of their sanctions on Russia by clamping down on sanctions circumvention....more
When the European Parliament announced that political agreement on the EU Green Bond Regulation (the Regulation) had been reached with the Council on 28 February 2023, rapporteur Paul Tang was quoted as saying...more
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings are increasingly used by investors, lenders and regulators to assess the sustainability performance of companies. They can, for example, assess an entity’s exposure to, and...more
On 17 May 2023, the EU Regulation establishing a carbon border adjustment mechanism (the CBAM Regulation) came into force. The CBAM Regulation will become applicable in phases, with provisions applying from 1 October 2023, 31...more
The EU emissions trading system (the EU ETS) is one of the key pillars of the EU’s policy to combat climate change and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from regulated sectors....more
To mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU and the UK, in parallel with other G7 members, released a new round of sanctions against Russia. In this bulletin we provide a high-level...more
Operators and traders of commodities such as coffee, cocoa and wood should start preparing for the new EU Regulation on deforestation-free supply chains. The new Regulation requires detailed due diligence to be undertaken to...more
At the close of 2022, and with the war in Ukraine entering its tenth month, the EU and the UK adopted further sanctions packages against Russia.
The latest sanctions packages include further asset freezes, an EU...more
With a ninth sanctions package against Russia in the making, the EU’s sustained response to the war in Ukraine has demonstrated that sanctions will remain at the forefront of EU policymaking. The array of sanctions adopted...more
The EU Emissions Trading System (the EU ETS) is one of the key pillars of the EU’s policy to combat climate change and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from regulated sectors....more
Supply chain risks are drawing attention across the globe. Recent geo-political and economic shocks such as Covid-19, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the U.S.-China trade war and connected inflation are driving this focus.
...more
On 6 October 2022, the European Union published its eighth package of sanctions against Russia. This responds to the organisation of ‘referenda’ in the Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia regions, the annexation of...more
With the EU FDI Regulation close to celebrating its second year anniversary, the European Commission (EC) has published its second annual report on EU FDI screening covering the operation of the mechanism in 2021. In...more
In the past weeks, the UK and EU regulatory authorities have made a series of announcements in relation to the enforcement of sanctions....more
1. Speed read -
As the start date looms for the Level 2 requirements under SFDR and the product disclosure regime in the Taxonomy Regulation, firms are progressing their implementation projects. This bulletin provides an...more
Over the last three months, the EU has imposed unprecedented sanctions against Russia and Belarus in response to the war in Ukraine (see our dedicated collection here). While adopting further sanctions is getting ever more...more