Communications need to be clear and timely Constantly review and maintain your customer communications content and strategy.  There is a regulatory expectation that firms will ensure consumers are adequately protected during severe disruption.&...

Introduction In the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak, and the restrictions imposed to curb its spread, there has been significant market disruption.  As has been seen in some real estate funds, there may therefore be difficulties for fund manag...

In response to Government guidance on maintaining educational provision for the children of key workers, the FCA and PRA have published guidance regarding individuals in th...

Please note that this is a developing situation and we will update this note on a regular basis when further information is available. Across the budget on 11 March 2020 and the subsequent COVID-19 briefing meetings the Chancellor of the Exchequer h...

The restrictive measures on the movement of people to slow the spread of COVID-19 pose specific legal issues for UK Investment Trusts, which are just entering into the reporting and Annual General Meeting (AGM) season.  AGMs have traditionally ...

Novel coronavirus (“COVID19”) has created significant challenges for the financial services sector. As trusted adviser to many of the world’s largest banks, insurers, asset managers, fintechs and other market participants we are he...

  The Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is causing disruption to businesses and markets across sectors and jurisdictions. In this briefing we offer some practical tips for borrowers, treasury departments and customers in relation to loans and oth...

The European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) has issued a public statement, “Actions to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the EU financial markets” urging national competent authorities not to prioritise supervisor...

...

  In the wake of COVID-19, force majeure can be invoked to obtain relief under certain contracts. In this briefing, we discuss if it is a good idea and certain considerations borrowers and financial services customers should make. The impact of...

...

Legal liability for financial institutions and financial services firms when using artificial intelligence and machine learning Recent advances in the development of artificial intelligence (AI), coupled with the availability of sufficient computing...

...

In its response to COVID-19, the UK Government has also been listening to business and seeking to provide further support mechanisms to help those businesses that have been forced to close in the short term. This has included the prohibition on land...

On Thursday 2 April 2020, the FCA issued draft guidance and Handbook changes to address the impact of Covid-19 on consumer credit customers who have credit cards, store cards and catalogue credit, personal loans and overdrafts. There is a short win...

The FCA and the PRA have issued a joint statement aimed at dual-regulated firms in an attempt to introduce some flexibility in connection with the senior managers and certification regime (SMCR) during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Responding to co...

Background The ongoing coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic has quickly developed into a deep economic crisis of the like never experienced before. Many businesses, including those in the financial services sector, are facing a prolonged period of disrupti...

On 3 April 2020, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (“BCBS”) and the International Organization of Securities Commissions (“IOSCO”) issued a statement recommending an extension to Phases 5 and 6 of the initial margin ...

As COVID-19 continues to cause far reaching disruption, the Cayman Islands’ Ministry of Financial Services issued two Press Releases on 25 and 26 March, putting forward a package of measures designed to mitigate the neg...

Across the banking sector, the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority predict that firms’ utilisation of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions will triple in the next three years (BoE and FCA Joint Report on Machine Learning in U...

On Thursday 9 April, the FCA confirmed measures to support consumer credit customers facing financial difficulty as a result of COVID 19 on personal loans, credit cards and overdrafts. Measures introduced by the new rules became applicable on Tuesda...

  On Friday 17 April 2020, the FCA issued a draft guidance for consultation on temporary forbearance measures to assist motor finance customers facing financial difficulty because of COVID-19. The consultation will close at 5 pm on Monday 20 Ap...

Our client briefing, “The final AIFMD cross-border fund distribution package: mapping the changes” published on 22 July 2019, provided a summary of the main changes introduced by Regulation (EU) 2019/1156 on facilitating cross-border d...

On Friday 17 April the FCA issued draft guidance on Buy-now pay-later (BNPL), rent-to-own (RTO) and pawnbroking. It proposes temporary financial relief for customers impacted by coronavirus and is intended to complement measures finalised on 9 April...

After previously setting out its expectations of general insurance firms in relation to their treatment of consumers during the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, on 15 April 2020 the UK Financial Regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), ...

DNB (the Dutch Central Bank) Banks: Micro prudential, less significant institutions (LSIs) - Banks can use their capital and liquidity buffer. Therefore, banks will be allowed to temporarily operate below the level of capital as defined by t...

Please note that further information is expected and we will update this note when this is available. Set out below is a summary of measures that have been announced by governments in various jurisdictions in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. ...

Please note, we will continue to update this note as and when further measures are announced. Summarises of the current position on directors' duties across some key jurisdictions noting any significant changes that have been announced by government...

  We are producing a series of videos in which some of our leading practices discuss the principal issues and opportunities in financial services as the COVID crisis abates, and we start moving into a new form of business as usual. Some of thes...

In this period of market uncertainty, financial services firms globally are facing a number of challenges and questions. We have created a selection of recent articles, webinars, podcasts and short videos published by Eversheds Sutherland to he...

Listen as our panel answer some of the most common questions on post-COVID19 litigation trends - this was presented in conjunction with Ankura. A recording of the session can be listened to here. In this session we explored: a review of the economi...

Coronavirus and executive pay: the issues The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted an economic crisis that has far surpassed that of the financial crash in 2008. The implications for executive pay against the backdrop of furloughed staff, lay-offs, staff...

Last December, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) launched an inquiry into racial harassment in Higher Education. On 23 October 2019 the EHRC published its report “Tackling racial harassment: universities challenged” under t...

1. Introduction 1.1 The Charity Commission has recently released detailed guidance for charities on their connections to non-charities, highlighting that whilst such connections can bring benefits they can also present risks and challenges. Common s...

  Wuhan coronavirus: implications for institutions Overview The spread of the Wuhan coronavirus gives rise to the same issues for organisations wherever they are based or operate around the world. These include assessing the risks faced by thei...

Background The Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act 2018 received Royal Assent as long ago as 13 September 2018. The intention was the Act would come into force in 2020, with further clarification on the provisions to be contained in regulations...

The issue of harassment and sexual misconduct has been a high profile one now for some time with widespread local and national coverage across multiple sectors and jurisdictions. This has included copious discussion and analysis of the issue in the ...

The legal issues surrounding the processing of personal data relating to criminal convictions, allegations and offences or related security measures (“Criminal Records Data”) are complex. Education institutions tackle such issues on a re...

Overview Our previous briefing on this topic (Coronavirus: Implications for Institutions) set out the main issues facing institutions when dealing with the CoVID-19 outbreak. In this briefing we address some of the more com...

Overview Our previous briefings on this topic (Coronavirus: Implications for Institutions and Full Article