The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a letter to Cryptoasset firms on the 4 July confirming that qualifying cryptoassets will now fall within the scope of the financial promotions regime. From the 8 October 2023, all firms marketing cryptoassets to UK consumers, including firms based overseas, must comply with the financial promotions regime. What is a Financial Promotion? A financial promotion is a broadly defined term, with no technological boundaries ...
We are pleased to issue our fifth edition of the Regulatory Compliance Quarterly Updates. These updates are intended to keep Maltese regulated entities informed of regulatory changes and developments taking place in the local financial services space. In this issue, we focus on the sector specific and cross-sectoral regulatory updates relating to investment services and asset management, company service providers, insurance undertakings, and insurance intermediaries ...
Buchalter Client Alert July 17, 2023 By: Melissa Richards Florida has enacted its own Commercial Financing Disclosure Law (“CFDL”) that is similar to California and New York’s disclosure laws. The Florida CFDL applies to covered “Commercial Financing Transactions” consummated on or after January 1, 2024 that are $500,000 or less and originated by a covered “Provider ...
On the 12th of June 2023, an Act to amend the Gaming Act (Chapter 583 of the Laws of Malta) was passed by the House of Representatives, which introduced article 56A to the Gaming Act in order to encourage the establishment of gaming operators in Malta who offer local and cross-border supply of services. On the 16th of June 2023, the MFSA published a Feedback Statement on the new Publication Policy, together with the Policy ...
On the 1st of December 2022, the MFSA published a Consultation Document on the New Publication Policy regarding Administrative Measures and Penalties thereby commencing a consultation period which closed on the 15th of January 2023. A subsequent Feedback Document containing the new Publication Policy was issued on the 16th of June 2023 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Publication Policy’), following feedback received from the market ...
Many billions of assets under management have already been tokenised. High profile managers such as Franklin Templeton, Abrdn, KKR, Mitsui and Hamilton Lane have already launched tokenised products. Whilst there is no doubt that this is a nascent space, and these assets still represent a tiny percentage of the funds industry, we expect this area to grow exponentially in the coming years. What is tokenisation? Tokenisation is the digital representation of "traditional" financial assets (e.g ...
Acting as a director of a company or incorporated body (whether incorporated in or under the laws of the Bailiwick of Guernsey or elsewhere) by way of business[1] is a regulated activity under The Regulation of Fiduciaries, Administration Businesses and Company Directors, etc (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2020 as amended (the "Fiduciaries Law") ...
Shoosmiths’ mobility head, Jonathan Smart, was a speaker at the SMMT International Automotive Summit 2023, hosted in London. Jonathan moderated a panel discussion focused on the competitive challenges facing the UK’s automotive manufacturing sector. The summit was aimed at addressing the challenges facing the automotive sector, including building resiliency, international collaboration, unlocking potential, competitiveness and innovation ...
We would like to inform you that the Extract1 from the decision of the Sub-Commission No. 171/5 as of July 07, 2023 was published on July 12, 2023 ...
In a defining moment for the digital economy, Vodafone Germany has recently announced its partnership with Cardano, a public blockchain platform, to launch one of the world’s largest NFT collections. This move by Vodafone demonstrates the growing interest of global telecommunications corporations in embracing blockchain technology and digital assets ...
On 16 June 2023 the High Court handed down its first instance decision in the case of Virgin Media Limited v NTL Pension Trustees II Limited and others, dealing with the impact on amendments affecting contracted out rights of failing to obtain a section 37 certificate ...
UK REACH (Registration, Authorisation, Evaluation and Restriction of Chemicals) is the UK’s post-Brexit chemicals regulatory framework for the Great Britain (GB) market. It is regulated by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and has the overall aim of ensuring the protection of human health and the environment from the use of chemicals. UK REACH places responsibility for understanding and managing the risks associated with the use of chemicals on those who place them on the market (i.e ...
With skills shortages increasing across multiple sectors and widespread productivity levels reportedly declining, many organisations are looking to develop the skills of their existing workforce and the wider talent pool ...
In the case 3389/MF, the applicant argued that his redundancy from Airmalta plc was not genuine and consequently, that he should be compensated for unfair dismissal. On the other hand, Airmalta claimed that the marketing business had changed throughout the years and through a restructuring process, it had been decided that the role of marketing manager was no longer needed ...
The transitional period linked to the Covid-19 pandemic ends on 30 June 2023. As a result, the social security thresholds for teleworking come into effect again, with all the obligations and administrative formalities that this entails. However, some cross-border teleworkers and their employers will be subject to new rules under the new European telework framework agreement_ signed by Luxembourg on 5 June 2023. 1 ...
‘Flexibility becomes the norm as businesses look to build resilience in their real estate portfolio and workplace strategy.’ That is the key takeaway from Colliers’ recently released Global Occupier Outlook 2023 report, which found that two-thirds of corporate occupiers active in EMEA anticipate that up to 20% of their commercial real estate portfolio will move from traditional leases to flex leases within the next five years ...
The economic landscape continues to place mortgage customers under significant pressure. Following discussions between the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and some of the largest mortgage lenders in the UK, the Mortgage Charter was signed to address measures aimed at helping customers who may be struggling to meet their mortgage repayments amid the cost-of-living crisis ...
In Industrial Tribunal case number 3642/CCG, the applicant claimed that he had been subjected to discrimination, lack of equal pay, a breach of the grievance procedure under the collective agreement, lack of payment of a performance bonus and constructive dismissal. Firstly considering discrimination, the applicant argued that he was not allowed to avail himself of a career break to work with a company operating in the financial services industry ...
Who qualifies as a Politically Exposed Person? Politically exposed persons (or “PEPs”) are individuals who have been entrusted with a prominent public function ...
Introduction The sphere of asset tracing and recovery, particularly the extent of tools available around the world, is rightly attracting more attention in cross-border fraud and investigations. This includes projects at the international level, such as UNCITRAL's ongoing efforts (for which the author acts as an expert), as well as attention being given in national legislatures around the world ...
While it may be arguable whether the announcement of the next phase of the UK’s open banking programme was as highly anticipated as the grand finale to HBO’s Succession, for the payment services industry a clear route to the future is much needed ...
Zoltan Balazs Kovacs prepared a summary to the key questions regarding the EU Whistleblowing Directive and the related change of legislation in Hungary with the act entering into force on 24 July 2023. 1 ...
