After the recent downturn, examiners have been placing more emphasis on reputation risk. This emphasis, however, is being applied paternalistically, in a way that is limiting legitimate transactions. I have heard of examiners advising bankers to terminate relationships with payday lenders because of reputation risk. The examiners are implicitly saying the risk of such association will so damage an institution's reputation as to jeopardize safety and soundness ...
With a low percentage of Nigeria’s population investing in the stock market and fewer Nigerians interested in investment opportunities, the rise ofRoboAdvisors is a welcome alternative in the financial advisory market (“the Market”) in Nigeria. In a bid toregulateand strengthen the Market, the Nigerian Security and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) recently rolled out the rules onRoboAdvisory services (‘the Rules”) in Nigeria ...
Payment Service Banks (“PSBs”) have remained a veritable vehicle for financial inclusion across countries since their introduction into the financial space,. In July 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria (“CBN”) issued a Supervisory Framework for Payment Service Banks, to supplement the existing Guidelines for the Licensing and Regulation of Payment Service Banks, (issued in 2018 and revised in 2020) ...
Ukrainian Exchange Controls Have Always Been, if Anything, Overprotective. As More Ukrainian Companies Are Seeking Finance Abroad, Ukraine Has to Consider Adding Clarity and Certainty to its Exchange Controls in Order to FacilitateCross-Border Finance Regulatory imperfections. The system of Ukrainian exchange controls is based on the Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine On the System of Currency Regulation and Currency Control (the “Decree”) adopted back in 1993 ...
Why a comprehensive exclusion of loss clause should cover 'wasted expenditure' - and how employers should resist. The Court of Appeal decision in Soteria Insurance Limited (formerly CIS General Insurance Limited) v IBM United Kingdom Limited (February 2022 Court of Appeal) contains a short but important point for those drafting exclusion clauses - especially those that seek to exclude indirect and consequential costs, loss of profits, loss of opportunity, etc ...
The International Trade Commission (ITC) sits in a nondescript office building about a block farther south of the National Mall than tourists usually care to venture. Patent owners come from around the country to this tree-lined street in Washington, D.C., to seek a powerful remedy to protect their patented products: an exclusion order. An exclusion order directs U.S. Customs and Border Protection to block infringing imports at the United States border ...
In the framework of a globalized world and social networks that are established as a measure of possible interest of economic, social and political groups, data protection regulations become more relevant ...
In the age of social distancing, it is about time the law is changed to allow wills to be executed electronically.Ingenious lawyers all over the Commonwealth are dreaming up rigmaroles for the signing of wills amid the pandemic. An English law firm has suggested that the will be signed at a park bench, with witnesses lurking nearby, ready to rotate around the document ...
On May 9, 2023, a new law was enacted, which aims to improve the prosecution of drug trafficking and organized crime, regulate the destination of assets seized in such offenses and strengthen rehabilitation and social reintegration institutions (the “New Law”). Among the main changes introduced by the New Law regarding the prosecution of drug trafficking are: (i) the increase of penalties for the offenses established in Law No ...
The Federal government’s COVID emergency loan programs and credit facilities have moved into critical new phases. As highlighted by the recent media focus on the new SBA PPP Forgiveness Questionnaire for borrowers, both borrowers and lenders face new and challenging issues regarding these loan programs, particularly PPP loans and the Main Street Loan Program. PPP Loan Program – For most borrowers, the time period for spending PPP loan proceeds has expired ...
In recent years, the intersection of economic openness and national security has prompted international policy development in various countries, including Norway. Concerns about vulnerabilities arising from foreign investments, particularly in security-sensitive sectors, have led to the revision of legislation and the initiation of supply chain assessments by trading partners ...
On 28 March 2022, the Government of the Russian Federation adopted Resolution No. 497 which introduced a large-scale bankruptcy moratorium starting 1 April. We have already written about the moratorium and the consequences of its introduction for creditors and debtors in more detail here and here. The legal regulation of the moratorium was established in accordance with Article 9.1 of the Bankruptcy Law and the clarifications set forth in Resolution No ...
Since the G7 meeting on 5 June when the G7 finance ministers announced a global corporation tax of at least 15%, there has been much written and spoken about the new proposed global minimum tax rate. Janet Yellen, the US Treasury Secretary, called the agreement a “historic day for economic diplomacy” ...
Five years ago, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (the “SECURE Act”) made several significant changes to certain distributions required pursuant to Internal Revenue Code (“Code”) Section 401(a)(9) (“Required Minimum Distributions” or “RMDs”). The changes related to the RMD ‘10-Year Rule’ (summarized in greater detail below) have proven to be particularly difficult to interpret ...
Adopted as part of the measures supporting enterprises in the context of the Covid-19 crisis, the ordinance n° 2020-306 of March 25th, 2020 contains the following temporary provisions applicable to contractual deadlines: SUSPENSION OF THE CONTRACTUAL STIPULATIONS SANCTIONING THE NON-PERFORMANCE OF AN OBLIGATION According to Article 4 of the ordinance: “Penalty payments, penalty clauses, termination clauses and acceleration clauses, the purpose of which is to sanction the non-
Recently, the General Directorate of Customs (DGA), under the provisions of art 440 of the Regulation of the Uniform Central American Customs Code (RECAUCA), has modified the period of stay for vehicles owned by foreign tourists, Salvadorans residing abroad, and Salvadoran students residing abroad ...
The Superintendence of Finance of Colombia issued External Circular 015 of 2020, whereby instructions related to the treatment of subsidy resources drawn by the State through Credit Institutions or Specialised Electronic Deposit Societies (SEDPES) within the framework of the Solidarity Income Programme are detailed ...
Recently, we have seen a flurry of congressional and executive activity on the issue of nondiscrimination in banking. In October 2020, Senators Warren and Booker, along with other Democratic senators, introduced the Fair Access to Financial Services Act of 2020. This bill seeks to prevent discrimination in banking based on “race, color, religion, national origin, and sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity) ...
In response to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government has passed several new laws to provide trillions of dollars of funding to affected businesses and individuals. But this also means there are new compliance considerations for entities receiving federal funds, especially as it relates to the False Claims Act’s “false certification” theory of liability ...
[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"13506","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","height":"311","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"480"}}]] Definitions: "LCF Law" means The Lending, Credit and Finance (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2022. "Notice" means the Guernsey Financial Services Commission's Notice with respect to the disapplication of the requirement to hold a licence under section 40 of the Lending, Credit and Finance (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2022 ...
Hand sanitiser production is just one aspect of business that's altered for £5bn industry, writes George Frier of Shepherd and Wedderburn The whisky industry continues to captivate consumers and entrepreneurs. Record exports continue and, within the sector, the emergence of new brands and the rejuvenation of existing brands demonstrate a vibrant sub-set of the Scottish food & drink economy ...
On 11 January 2024 the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) published policy statement PS24/1 (without consultation). The policy statement sets out temporary changes to the complaints handling rules for motor finance complaints, amid a rise in complaints against motor finance firms relating to commission ...
Yesterday, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a consultation paper on social media guidance for firms promoting financial services and products. The draft guidance does not contain anything new so far as "dos and don'ts" for promotional material - including the new rules set to come into force on 8 October this year regarding promotion of crypto-related investments (see relevant article here) ...
On 25 September 2023, in conjunction with the Prudential Regulation Authority, the Financial Conduct Authority published a consultation paper on diversity and inclusion in the financial sector. The proposals include measures to ‘support healthy work cultures, reduce groupthink and unlock talent’, in order to support the competitiveness of the UK’s financial services sector ...
