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UK Jurisdiction Taskforce publishes Report on Control of Digital Assets
This article reviews the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce’s Report on Control of Digital Assets (the Report). Certain digital assets fall into the new third category of property enabled by the entry into force of the Property (Digital Assets etc) Act 2025. For these digital assets, “control” is a key concept, analogous to possession for tangible property. The Report is a factual reference describing control intended for use by legal practitioners to develop legal rules governing digital assets. It highlights distinctions between control of traditional accounts and control of blockchain-based assets. Building on this distinction, it lists various modes of control, such as shared and delegated control and control via smart contracts, through the addition of successive layers of complexity.
29 June 2026An equity repo trapped in the body of a secured loan agreement? Equity finance after Shukla
In this article, the author considers how the Commercial Court approached issues of recharacterisation in Shukla v St James Bank & Trust Company Ltd & Or [2026] EWHC 851 (Comm) and the extent to which it has relevance to the equity securities finance and prime brokerage markets and beyond.
29 June 2026The right for a chargor entity to request enforcement
In this article, Richard Salter KC looks into the question of whether, under a suitably worded qualifying floating charge, a mere request by the chargor to the chargee can be sufficient to trigger the power of the chargee to appoint an Administrator, even if the underlying debt has not yet become payable.
29 June 2026Critical services disruption: the importance of financial institutions’ ability to demonstrate their response and how
As of early 2026, cyber and operational resilience regulation in Hong Kong and Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) has shifted from guidance‑led expectations (which offer flexibility as to how the regulated institution implements the regulation) to enforceable obligations. The differentiator is no longer about the number of policies in place, but whether an institution can produce audit‑ready evidence that statutory duties have been discharged under pressure – when facts are incomplete and reporting clocks are already running. This article sets out four practical pillars that increasingly determine supervisory outcomes: clock readiness (reporting within statutory guidelines), evidence readiness, privilege readiness and vendor readiness.
29 June 2026Celestial v UniCredit: the Supreme Court decision and its ramifications
This article considers the decision of the Supreme Court in Celestial Aviation Services Limited v UniCredit Bank GmbH [2026] UKSC 10, 1 looking at the court’s approach as a matter of law and the practical and commercial ramifications of the decision, on the world of trade finance in particular.
29 June 2026Insolvency in English limited partnerships: considerations for fund finance lenders
This article examines certain insolvency implications for English limited partnership structures, a common vehicle in the private capital market, with a focus on what this means for fund finance agreements. The article considers three scenarios: (i) insolvency of the sole corporate general partner; (ii) insolvency of a corporate limited partner; and (iii) the English limited partnership (ELP) itself becoming insolvent.
Whilst ELP structures and related financings vary significantly, and the drivers of distress in each case would likely be unique – noting that these structures are often “insolvency remote” by design – these considerations should provide a core foundation for analysing stress should it arise.
The expanding role of back leverage: “loan-on-loan” for non-real estate assets
In this article, the authors examine the core structure of “loan-on-loan” transactions and consider how market practice may translate to financing lending and underlying asset classes beyond the real estate realm.
23 May 2026Covenant-invisible priming in leveraged finance: the hidden risk of monetisation structures
This article examines covenant-invisible priming where groups generate immediate liquidity by converting future economic value into present cash, either through asset transfers or by delaying payment obligations, without triggering traditional covenant protections. It identifies key risks, flags practical considerations and offers potential solutions for creditors and practitioners.
23 May 2026State-issued stablecoins in the EU: fiscal innovation or monetary encroachment?
This article examines whether EU member states may issue euro-referenced stablecoins without infringing the EU’s exclusive competence for monetary policy. It argues that the legal assessment depends on objectives and effects rather than on technological form. Where a digital token is structured as a redeemable liability, lacks legal tender status, and avoids systemic monetary impact, it may well fall within national fiscal autonomy.
23 May 2026The sale-versus-loan problem of receivables financing from a US perspective
In this article the authors set out and explain a framework to assist practitioners and judges in distinguishing between transactions in which a receivable secures an obligation and those in which the receivable has been sold outright. The framework seeks to mitigate recharacterisation risk.
23 May 2026
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