Consumer Credit Act

18 February 2016

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has today launched a Call for Input on the review of retained provisions of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (CCA). The review will consider whether particular CCA provisions remain appropriate or should be modified, updated, or replaced by FCA rules or guidance in order to maintain the right degree of consumer protection for today’s market.
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Expected capital gain for Nordea when Visa Inc acquires Visa Europe Ltd

16 February 2016

Visa Inc. and Visa Europe Ltd. announced in November 2015 an agreement for Visa Inc. to acquire Visa Europe. Nordea is a shareholder and member in Visa Europe and expects to recognise a gain following the closing of the transaction. The pre-tax gain for Nordea is expected to be within the range of EUR 90m to EUR 130m in cash, with an additional possible gain on preferred stock amounting to around 25% of the cash portion. In addition Nordea will receive proceeds stemming from divested operations, in which Nordea has claims that are not yet possible to quantify.
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£2.9 million to be returned to investors following FCA prosecution

14 February 2016

Southwark Crown Court recently ordered almost £2.65 million to be returned to investors who had invested in a fraudulent collective scheme established and operated by Alex Hope. In addition, Mr Hope was made the subject of a Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (“POCA”) confiscation order to the sum of £166,696. Mr Hope must pay the order in full within three months or face a further sentence of 20 months imprisonment in default, consecutive to the seven year sentence imposed upon him in January 2015.
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Onboard customers more quickly so business can fly

09 February 2016

Adriaan Kom

Let us walk the tightrope between meeting compliance rules for onboarding customers and delivering sustainable, ethical business growth. David Zalman spoke for almost every boardroom executive when he highlighted the pressure compliance puts on a business. The chairman and CEO of the U.S. financial services company Prosperity Bank commented, “I’ve been in banking since 1978, and today, probably over half of my time is spent with regulatory requirements.”
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Revised version of the General guide to account opening

08 February 2016

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision recently issued the final revised version of the General guide to account opening, first published in 2003. The Basel Committee deems it worthwhile to issue this guide as an annex to the guidelines on the Sound management of risks related to money laundering and financing of terrorism, which was first published in January 2014. These guidelines revised, updated and merged two previous publications of the Basel Committee, issued in 2001 and 2004.
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Clearing of deliverable FX instruments

08 February 2016

The Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI) and the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) recently issued a statement on the clearing of deliverable FX instruments. This statement clarifies the expectations of CPMI and IOSCO – as originally set out in the Principles for Financial Market Infrastructures — with respect to CCP clearing of deliverable FX instruments and the associated models for effecting their settlement.

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Accountability rules for wholesale traders and interim rules on regulatory references

07 February 2016

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently published the final rules confirming their approach to improving individual accountability for those carrying out wholesale activities, such as algorithmic and high-frequency trading, in banks, building societies, and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) designated investment firms. The rules also provide clarity on aspects of the Regime’s territorial application.

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