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We provide advice across the entire spectrum of financial services, offering valuable insights into the latest regulatory, market, and governance developments. Our expertise spans financial crime and multi-jurisdictional investigations to fintech and sustainability, helping clients navigate the evolving landscape and stay ahead of the curve.
Where legal expertise meets the future of financial markets
The financial services sector is constantly evolving, driven by rapid regulatory change, market innovation and shifting client demands. Freshfields is deeply engaged in these changes, offering expert insights across a wide range of financial services areas.
We provide timely reactions and actionable insights on the latest legal developments, helping clients understand and navigate complex issues from investment trading and governance to financial crime and fintech.
Regulators and regulatory framework
Regulators and regulatory framework
10 Mar 2025
The EU is committed to bringing the wider financial sector into the digital age. To this end, it has proposed a new framework for secure...
10 Mar 2025
On 26 February 2025, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a portfolio letter addressed to CEOs of firms in the asset...
7 Mar 2025
On 24 February, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published the findings from its review of ongoing advice services provided by 22 of...
25 Feb 2025
As technology evolves, so do challenges in effectively regulating it. In an era where there is increasing focus on effective oversight of...
25 Feb 2025
The FCA identifies climate adaptation challenges for financial services firms Every five years, the UK government produces an assessment...
17 Feb 2025
To aid in the implementation of the EU Data Act, the European Commission has released a set of frequently asked questions (FAQ). For a...
13 Feb 2025
Today, the UK government issued its draft strategic steer to the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) for consultation. Our separate...
13 Feb 2025
Today, the UK government issued its draft strategic steer to the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) for consultation. Why does the...
13 Feb 2025
Geopolitical risks are a significant concern for businesses and investors in the current global landscape. Understanding these risks is...
7 Feb 2025
An important element of the UK’s new public offers and admissions to trading regime is the introduction of the public offer platform...
28 Jan 2025
Note: this article originally ran in MedCity News The MedTech industry is accelerating at an unprecedented pace. As AI reshapes the...
27 Jan 2025
We asked more than 200 Freshfields lawyers – across geographies and practice areas: what are the 1-2 issues top of mind for you and your...
21 Jan 2025
In brief: On 12 December 2024, draft legislation to amend the Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004 was laid before...
14 Jan 2025
2024 was a momentous year for the financial services industry. Financial institutions had to deal with geopolitical risks arising from...
13 Jan 2025
The new Labour government has placed financial services at the centre of its plans to grow the UK economy, and UK regulators have an...
2 Jan 2025
As far as MiCAR is concerned, December 2024 was a busy month for both market participants and competent authorities. On 17 December 2024,...
20 Dec 2024
On 16 December 2024 the FCA published its much-anticipated Discussion Paper on (i) cryptoasset admissions and disclosures and (ii) the...
18 Dec 2024
On 23 October 2024 the UK government introduced the Data (Use and Access) Bill to Parliament (the DUAB). The DUAB is a wide-ranging and...
2 Dec 2024
Finally! Avid readers of Freshfields blogs might remember from our post last autumn that the UK government and financial regulators in...
25 Nov 2024
At a Glance On 15 November 2024, the FCA and FOS jointly published a call for input as to how the FOS might improve its redress...
20 Nov 2024
For the next three months, the UK Government will consult on new rules for consumer subscription contracts, which are due to come into...
29 Oct 2024
On 17 October 2024, HM Treasury launched its third consultation on the proposed regulation of Buy-Now, Pay-Later (BNPL) credit...
25 Oct 2024
On 23 October 2024 the UK government introduced the Data (Use and Access) Bill to Parliament (the DUAB). The DUAB is a wide-ranging and...
24 Oct 2024
We’re excited to share our latest report, Leading the Change: 2025 Data Law Trends. Data now impacts all aspects of businesses, from...
21 Oct 2024
In recent months, there has been significant media coverage on the growing regulatory scrutiny of the private capital sector. In this...
21 Oct 2024
Regulators around the world have long been concerned about the operational resilience of banks and other financial institutions, and the...
4 Oct 2024
On 3 October the European Commission published its long-awaited Digital Fairness Fitness Check report (see link here). Based on the...
3 Oct 2024
The OPSS (Office for Product Safety and Standards - the UK’s product safety regulator) proposed an overhaul of the UK’s current product...
1 Oct 2024
Aiming to encourage voluntary data sharing for business and citizen benefits through secure and trustworthy exchanges, the Data...
Prudential requirements
Prudential requirements
22 May 2024
Late last month, the PRA published a Dear CRO letter which sets out the main findings of its thematic review into UK regulated banks’...
15 Mar 2024
In a 2021 speech, Sam Woods, the CEO of the UK’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), stated that one of the regulator’s focuses for...
1 Nov 2023
Following the failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and several other U.S. small and mid-sized banks in March 2023, U.S. regulators have...
24 Jul 2023
Regulators and standard-setters, domestic and international, are worrying about the potential for investment funds to pose risks to...
27 Apr 2023
On Monday 24 April 2023 both the Pensions Regulator (TPR) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued new guidance on leveraged...
27 Apr 2023
The recent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) reform of regulations applying to operational...
8 Mar 2023
Following its previous work on a new “strong and simple” prudential framework for non-systemic UK banks and building societies (see our...
5 Oct 2022
On 26 September 2022, the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht, BaFin)...
3 Oct 2022
The European Banking Authority (EBA) published an insightful discussion paper in May 2022 on the role of environmental risks in the EU...
23 Jun 2022
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) has published its “Principles for the effective management and supervision of...
19 May 2022
The OECD has published a consultation on the exclusion of certain Financial Services entities from pillar one of its two-pillar solution...
Governance
Governance
31 Jul 2024
On 22 July 2024, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) announced several immediate revisions to the UK Stewardship Code 2020 in order to...
18 Jul 2024
Germany's Ursula von der Leyen has been elected President of the European Commission for a second mandate, with 401 votes in favour, 284...
6 Oct 2023
PRA and FCA proposals on diversity & inclusion and non-financial misconduct seek to drive change in the UK financial sector On 25...
2 May 2023
On 30 March 2023, the Financial Conduct Authority (the FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (the PRA) published a joint...
27 Apr 2023
The recent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) reform of regulations applying to operational...
23 Jun 2022
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) has published its “Principles for the effective management and supervision of...
14 Jun 2022
On the critical list HM Treasury’s (HMT) policy statement on critical third parties (CTPs) to the finance sector e.g. cloud services...
Investment trading and markets
Investment trading and markets
13 Feb 2025
Geopolitical risks are a significant concern for businesses and investors in the current global landscape. Understanding these risks is...
7 Aug 2024
On 26 July 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a consultation paper (CP24/14) with proposals on three different but...
18 Jul 2024
Germany's Ursula von der Leyen has been elected President of the European Commission for a second mandate, with 401 votes in favour, 284...
8 Dec 2023
In a judgment that will be of interest to exchanges and those who trade on them, the English High Court dismissed judicial review...
9 Nov 2023
On 31 October 2023, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued Market Watch 75, in which it raised concerns over possible abuses of the...
21 Jul 2023
It has been a while since the CESR guidelines on “Understanding the definition of advice under MiFID” were published. To be precise, 13...
7 Jul 2023
In the heated discussion around the ban on payment for order flow, the proposal on the Retail Investment Package (the Proposal), adopted...
2 Aug 2022
In April 2022, in the response to its consultation on regulatory approach to, among other things, distributed ledger technology (DLT) in...
8 Jun 2022
The Financial Markets Standards Board (FMSB) believes so. Or at least the recent FMSB report indicates that there are common broad...
Markets and clearing (CCPs)
Markets and clearing (CCPs)
13 Feb 2025
Geopolitical risks are a significant concern for businesses and investors in the current global landscape. Understanding these risks is...
7 Aug 2024
On 26 July 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a consultation paper (CP24/14) with proposals on three different but...
8 Dec 2023
In a judgment that will be of interest to exchanges and those who trade on them, the English High Court dismissed judicial review...
2 Aug 2022
In April 2022, in the response to its consultation on regulatory approach to, among other things, distributed ledger technology (DLT) in...
Retail markets
Retail markets
13 Nov 2024
Last month, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published its key findings from a review of 23 payments firms’ implementation of the...
4 Jul 2024
I. Introduction Manufacturers of consumer-facing products in the increasingly integrated European market operate in a complex...
26 Mar 2024
As we did in 2021, 2022, 2023 we have crowdsourced some fintech predictions for the year ahead from the EU Freshfields Fintech team,...
3 Jan 2024
On 8 December 2023, HM Treasury (HMT) and the FCA published a joint policy paper (DP23/5) on the Advice Guidance Boundary Review (the...
19 Nov 2023
Both the desire for higher yields and the low interest rate environment of the past years has seen retail investors’ focus increasingly...
9 Aug 2023
On 31 July 2023, the FCA published its Cash Savings Market Review 2023. In order to combat high inflation in the UK (currently at 7.9%)...
21 Jul 2023
It has been a while since the CESR guidelines on “Understanding the definition of advice under MiFID” were published. To be precise, 13...
7 Jul 2023
In the heated discussion around the ban on payment for order flow, the proposal on the Retail Investment Package (the Proposal), adopted...
25 May 2023
The FCA’s focus on vulnerable customers is longstanding. In the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, the ongoing cost of living crisis,...
11 May 2023
Although the FCA’s new Consumer Duty is not yet in force, the regulatory environment is already shifting. For example, the FCA has stated...
10 Jan 2023
The issue front and centre of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) 2022 Annual Public Meeting was the cost of living crisis. At that...
30 Sep 2022
The anticipated cost of living crisis is here, and yesterday’s ‘Dear CEO’ letter to insurers confirms the FCA’s return to a theme it...
Financial crime
Financial crime
5 Feb 2025
On 3 February 2025, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a Dear CEO letter to payments firms that are supervised by the...
21 Jan 2025
As we did in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024, we have crowdsourced predictions for the year ahead from the Freshfields global fintech team....
16 Dec 2024
The drumbeat of calls for the UK to introduce a programme of whistleblower incentivisation continues to grow louder. In our view, a...
7 Nov 2024
On 6 November 2024, the UK Government published final guidance on what constitute reasonable prevention procedures (the “Guidance”), on...
31 Oct 2024
On both sides of the Atlantic, law enforcement agencies are showing increasing interest in using incentivisation as a means to detect...
25 Sep 2024
After a few months of silence (the FCA’s promise to listen to the “extensive feedback” it had received at the consultation’s close in...
22 Aug 2024
Few areas of regulatory law are evolving as rapidly as European money laundering law. Over the past few years these requirements have...
10 Jul 2024
A recent Court of Appeal decision [1] on the UK Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) has provoked significant interest given its focus on the...
5 Jul 2024
Legislators, regulators and law enforcement authorities are increasing their efforts to detect and combat money laundering. Although this...
29 May 2024
On May 13, 2024, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) took another...
13 May 2024
Professional football is not just an entertaining happening for millions of fans around the world; it is also a big money game. During...
24 Apr 2024
The payments landscape has undergone significant changes over the past decade, changes driven by fast-paced technological advancements...
12 Apr 2024
At a Glance The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (the FCA) has recently published its Business Plan for 2024/25, setting out its...
6 Mar 2024
In the recent case of Uzbekov v Revolut, the English High Court struck out a breach of contract claim brought by Mr Uzbekov following...
29 Nov 2023
Fund transfers, crypto-assets and AML/CTF – the European Banking Authority’s take on the ‘Travel Rule’ The fight against money laundering...
7 Nov 2023
The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 which received Royal Assent on 26 October is aimed at preventing the abuse of UK...
15 Sep 2023
The UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) recently issued its first “disclosure notice” and, on the same day, updated...
21 Jun 2023
In a nutshell Recent amendments to the UK's Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill (the Bill), announced on 15 June, could...
30 May 2023
In January of this year, the German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof – BGH) ruled in on the unduly high remuneration granted...
6 Apr 2023
In August 2022, Germany’s finance minister, Christian Lindner, announced a new federal agency, the Higher Federal Authority for Combating...
11 Oct 2022
It is said to have been one of the hottest summers in Germany since weather records were kept - the heated atmosphere in the money...
29 Jul 2022
Given the exceptional scale and speed with which sanctions were implemented against Russia by the UK Government, the FCA and the Office...
8 Jun 2022
The Financial Markets Standards Board (FMSB) believes so. Or at least the recent FMSB report indicates that there are common broad...
11 May 2022
The 2022 Queen’s Speech contained details of two proposed Bills that will impact the financial services community. The Financial Services...
9 Feb 2022
Given the opportunities for money laundering, fraud and other financial crime that government responses to the pandemic presented, it is...
Investigations and enforcement
Investigations and enforcement
24 Feb 2025
Introduction Supply chains are under the radar of public prosecutor offices, other governmental authorities, including the competition...
6 Feb 2025
The House of Lord’s Financial Services Regulation Committee has today published its report on the FCA’s publicity consultation, Naming...
22 Jan 2025
Although 2024 has not seen a return to the levels of fines and outcomes of the pre-financial crisis era, there has been a notable uptick...
19 Dec 2024
The Court of Appeal’s decision On 25 October 2024, the Court of Appeal handed down its judgment in three linked appeals – Johnson v...
29 Nov 2024
The FCA yesterday published its revised proposals to publicise enforcement investigations. Reactions to the original proposals both from...
21 Nov 2024
A recent UK FCA decision highlights the FCA’s expectation that, in certain circumstances, issues relating to the conduct of senior...
7 Nov 2024
On 6 November 2024, the UK Government published final guidance on what constitute reasonable prevention procedures (the “Guidance”), on...
14 Oct 2024
In a recent decision, the UK Court of Appeal confirmed that the FCA can impose a redress requirement on an FCA-regulated firm without...
20 Sep 2024
In today’s dynamic business environment, decision-making frequently entails venturing into unknown territory. It is often challenging to...
22 Aug 2024
Few areas of regulatory law are evolving as rapidly as European money laundering law. Over the past few years these requirements have...
19 Aug 2024
In an order dated 12 August 2024, the General Court of the European Union (‘General Court’) dismissed an application for interim measures...
11 Jun 2024
Within minutes of the UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (the DMCC Act) receiving Royal Assent on the evening of 24...
24 May 2024
In the final days of Parliament, the landmark UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (the ‘Act’) has received Royal...
2 May 2024
The consultation period for CP24/2 closed on Tuesday, marking the end of (at least the first phase of) what has been widely perceived to...
12 Apr 2024
At a Glance The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (the FCA) has recently published its Business Plan for 2024/25, setting out its...
29 Feb 2024
On 27 February 2024, the FCA announced a consultation on proposed amendments to its existing enforcement policy. These include proposals...
14 Feb 2024
The FCA has taken another notable step as part of its efforts to crack down on non-financial misconduct in the workplace. As we noted in...
12 Feb 2024
In its opinion of 29 January 2024, the Italian Council of State (CdS) published its views on the scope of application of the new market...
7 Feb 2024
We have published an article on recent UK financial services enforcement and emerging trends. There has been a decline in the number and...
6 Feb 2024
Following a consultation last year, the Bank of England policy statement (PS01/24) introduces changes to the Prudential Regulation...
11 Dec 2023
Introduction Yesterday (10 December 2023) was the tenth anniversary of what must be the most cited decision when it comes to board-level...
25 Sep 2023
Until recently, competition policy has been considered through a gender-neutral lens – focused on “average” consumers, characterised by...
15 Sep 2023
The UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) recently issued its first “disclosure notice” and, on the same day, updated...
14 Sep 2023
Over the course of the last months, the Russian government has ramped up its “countermeasures” intended to counteract the effect of...
11 Jul 2023
Lawmaking in Germany can be turbulent at times but the German Bundestag – i.e., the parliamentary groups of the ‘traffic light coalition’...
21 Jun 2023
In a nutshell Recent amendments to the UK's Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill (the Bill), announced on 15 June, could...
30 May 2023
In January of this year, the German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof – BGH) ruled in on the unduly high remuneration granted...
27 Apr 2023
The recent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) reform of regulations applying to operational...
6 Apr 2023
In August 2022, Germany’s finance minister, Christian Lindner, announced a new federal agency, the Higher Federal Authority for Combating...
30 Mar 2023
In a surprise move, the European Commission has published a revised version of its 2008 guidance on enforcement priorities for abusive...
20 Mar 2023
Antitrust enforcement in labor markets has gained momentum in recent months as agencies in the US, Europe and Asia signal tougher...
29 Jul 2022
Given the exceptional scale and speed with which sanctions were implemented against Russia by the UK Government, the FCA and the Office...
9 Feb 2022
Given the opportunities for money laundering, fraud and other financial crime that government responses to the pandemic presented, it is...
25 Jan 2022
The FCA’s first criminal prosecution of a bank, which was also its first prosecution for breaches of the UK’s Money Laundering...
Financial services litigation
Financial services litigation
28 Jan 2025
The English Court of Appeal has rejected the use of a bifurcated representative procedure to bring shareholder claims under section...
8 Nov 2024
So far this year we’ve seen a range of important cases and developments before the Courts in the UK affecting financial institutions. In...
23 Oct 2024
The decision in Standard Chartered v Guaranty Nominees [2024] EWHC 2605 (Comm) considers how to interpret contractual provisions...
18 Oct 2024
The English Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal of the High Court’s judgment in favour of the London Metal Exchange (LME) and LME Clear,...
18 Oct 2024
Today, the German Federal Council (Bundesrat) passed the law already adopted by the German Parliament (Bundestag) to introduce a new...
14 Oct 2024
In a recent decision, the UK Court of Appeal confirmed that the FCA can impose a redress requirement on an FCA-regulated firm without...
25 Sep 2024
After a few months of silence (the FCA’s promise to listen to the “extensive feedback” it had received at the consultation’s close in...
8 Apr 2024
The High Court’s recent judgment in CCP Graduate School Ltd v National Westminster Bank, [2024] EWHC 581 (KB) is the first decision...
21 Mar 2024
Climate litigation and other ESG risks are on the rise around the world for corporates and financial institutions. In the EU and UK a...
6 Mar 2024
In the recent case of Uzbekov v Revolut, the English High Court struck out a breach of contract claim brought by Mr Uzbekov following...
8 Dec 2023
In a judgment that will be of interest to exchanges and those who trade on them, the English High Court dismissed judicial review...
14 Jul 2023
In the important judgment in Philipp v Barclays Bank plc handed down this week, the UK Supreme Court has rejected the extension of a...
2 May 2023
Lord Sumption recently delivered the lead judgment in proceedings before the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal (CFA) which concerned the...
27 Apr 2023
One consequence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the US, UK, and EU sanctions that it spawned is a spate of Russia-related litigation...
18 Jan 2022
In recent months, public statements by the Biden administration and senior officials from US enforcement agencies attest to a renewed...
Investment funds and fund managers
Investment funds and fund managers
6 Feb 2025
Die englische Version dieses Artikels finden Sie hier. Der Regierungsentwurf zum 2. Betriebsrentenstärkungsgesetz vom 18. September 2024,...
31 Jul 2024
On 22 July 2024, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) announced several immediate revisions to the UK Stewardship Code 2020 in order to...
19 Apr 2024
On 10 April 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a consultation paper (CP 24/7) on Payment Optionality for Investment...
8 Mar 2024
In an unusually rowdy House of Commons, the Chancellor delivered what will be his last Spring Budget before a UK general election widely...
19 Nov 2023
Both the desire for higher yields and the low interest rate environment of the past years has seen retail investors’ focus increasingly...
29 Sep 2023
Key message Existing authorised firms who want to be able to approve financial promotions for unauthorised firms after 7 February 2024...
24 Jul 2023
Regulators and standard-setters, domestic and international, are worrying about the potential for investment funds to pose risks to...
28 Jun 2023
On 19 June 2023, the UK Government published a consultation on reforms intended to clarify and modernise the UK’s transfer pricing (TP),...
11 May 2023
The Spanish Supreme Court has recently confirmed that dividends paid by Spanish companies to non-resident open-ended alternative...
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Contacts
Contacts
New York
David SewellPartner & US Head of Financial Services Regulatory
Frankfurt am Main
Alexander GlosPartner & Co-head Financial Institutions Group
London, Dublin
Simon OrtonPartner & Co-head Financial Institutions Group
London
Emma Rachmaninovパートナー
New York
Kimberly ZelnickGlobal Head of Financial Institutions Disputes Group
Hong Kong
Matthew O'Callaghanパートナー