There is a huge market for sustainable investment products, resulting in a growing number of products marketed as such. As this demand grows, so does the risk of "greenwashing", a practice on which European regulators, including the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), have increasingly focused. In November 2023, the FCA...

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced in January that it will investigate the historical use of discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs) in the motor finance industry. If the FCA finds that motor finance firms owe redress to customers because they paid too much for their car, it may decide that...

Proposed changes to European payments legislation will tighten up an exemption relied on by many people platforms, managed service providers (MSPs) and payroll providers that make payments to workers (or intermediaries via which workers are engaged) in the EU. The European Union is updating its regulatory regime governing payments and...

Rules regulating which statements to use when promoting unregulated collective investment schemes have lasted less than two months, after having unexpectedly been changed, enabling a wider distribution of funds. The EU has changed its rules governing asset management (which was expected), while the UK's "host AIFM" model comes under scrutiny...

The future of financial services is digital and data driven. The promotion of data-driven financial services is a key priority for the European Commission. However, an obstacle for the Commission achieving these objectives is the absence of a framework for responsible access to customer data and the sharing of this...

The UK Supreme Court's judgment in Paccar Inc & Ors, R (on the application of) v Competition Appeal Tribunal & Ors in October 2023 had significant implications for litigation funding agreements (LFAs). The Supreme Court determined that the LFAs applicable in the proceedings were to be construed as the litigation...

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published its much-anticipated policy document in November last year setting out the core components of its new sustainability disclosure requirements (SDR) and investment labels regime and who it will impact. For sustainable funds, the question fund managers now need to consider is whether they wish...

The start of spring brings an update from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), following up on two previous "Dear CEO" letters, setting forth their supervisory priorities for the next year. Meanwhile, in the European Union, the updated Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) and Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation...

Under Dutch law, the interests of clients must be taken into account in the manufacturing and distribution process of financial products. First, to prevent any mis-selling, and second, to maintain overall trust in the financial sector. In order to ensure this, the manufacturing of financial products by financial institutions is...