The option to participate in collective assurance activities is welcome, but this article makes the case for more guidance from sectoral regulators and competition authorities to allow banks and their service providers to truly get comfortable.
13 June 2024In this article, the author considers the EU’s “location policy” which requires euro-denominated derivatives clearing to take place in the EU, including how links between CCPs which meet international standards may actually increase multilateral netting benefits.
13 June 2024Whilst standards like the Equator Principles and the Responsible Ship Recycling Standards have been applied to specific sectors or asset classes for some time, standards with wider application to the bond and loan markets are now gaining traction. These often have different purposes and consequences for non-compliance. With regulatory frameworks and market practice still developing, further innovation in sustainable debt standards and the refinement of existing standards is expected.
13 June 2024In this In Practice article Charles Kerrigan considers automation and standardisation in commercial lending transactions. Part 2 of this article considers the effect on these topics of the fintech industry’s development.
13 June 2024In this In Practice article, Daniel Nevzat provides a short overview of the Climate Delegated Act outlining the technical screening criteria (TSC) which set the conditions for an economic activity to qualify as contributing substantially to climate change mitigation or climate change adaptation under the EU Taxonomy Regulation.
13 June 2024The recent increase in the use of special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) has been generating much discussion in the press, the finance industry and among lawyers and regulators. The trend began in the US and is spreading across the globe, with securities exchanges in a number of jurisdictions competing to position themselves as an alternative listing venue of choice for SPACs. In this In Practice article, the authors consider their structure and risk profile and whether the securities that they issue have the potential to be a new asset class for margin lenders.
13 June 2024In Okpabi & others v Royal Dutch Shell plc & another [2021] UKSC 3, the Supreme Court held that the claimants had an arguable case that Royal Dutch Shell, the UK-incorporated holding company in the Shell group, owed a duty of care to people affected by the operations of a Nigerian subsidiary. The claims will now return to the High Court, which will decide whether in fact such a duty was owed and, if so, whether it was breached and caused the loss claimed. Some commentators have seen the decision as heralding a new wave of international tort claims in the English courts. However, changes brought about by Brexit, as well as the court’s earlier judgment in Lungowe v Vedanta, may complicate this analysis.
13 June 2024This In Practice article sets out what a skilled person report is, what a skilled person report can be commissioned for, what the consequences are for an entity in practice and considers how often skilled person reports are commissioned by the regulators.
13 June 2024In this In Practice article the authors focus on the practical considerations when commencing insolvency proceedings in the UK and the new complexities both at home and away, applicable from the start of 2021.
13 June 2024In this In Practice article, the authors consider the Court of Appeal decision in Adams v Options UK Personal Pensions1 in which a regulated firm was found liable because its unregulated introducer “encouraged” clients to enter investments.
13 June 2024