Financial services regulation

We have FCA experience at a senior level as well as in house experience gained in clearing banks and other major financial institutions. This gives us a unique perspective on the regulatory environment and the regulators likely approach to particular issues, combined with a practical and client focused approach.

We can offer guidance on every aspect of regulatory change and all types of regulatory issues, including:

• Compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, transactional support and product launches.
• Supervisory inquiries including thematic reviews and visits, 'Dear CEO' letters and attestations.
• Contentious issues including S166 skilled persons appointments, information requirements, enforcement investigations, redress and customer communications exercises.
• Regularly reviewing clients’ businesses to help them build a more compliant and sustainable business model.

• Advising a banking client in relation to a range of regulatory matters arising within the Bank. Key instructions include advising on the contentious exit of an approved person due to summary dismissal; KYC issues arising in relation to a rights issue and advising on a variation of the Bank's permissions. Due to the nature of this client's operations, requests for advice have a very short lead time and often have an interesting international element requiring engagement with their parent entity domiciled in a non-European State.
• Conducting a review of systems and controls, governance and resourcing of the anti-money laundering arrangements in the Wealth division of a global banking group.
• Advising an international bank on how it can maintain comprehensive and up-to-date terms and conditions in line with the requirements of the FCA to provide customers with more information in terms that are transparent and accessible. We conducted a review of Corporate Banking Terms and Conditions and are providing advice on the regulatory obligations that apply to the London branch when it provides critical or important functions in light of the FCA and PRA Handbook requirements on critical outsourcing arrangements.
• Advising a financial services client that is overhauling its client money arrangements with its current clearing bank in line with the FCA's CASS rules and policy statement 14/9. We are providing outgoing support on its regulatory obligations with respect to the project. These instructions have involved engaging with the FCA to discuss the proposals as well as preparing side letters to amend the clearing bank's standard terms and conditions.
• Undertaking a review of over 60 documents used by a private wealth bank for fairness and enforceability risks and recommending changes to reduce those risks (including interacting with the FCA's fairness team).

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