The FCA’s long-awaited regime seeks to raise standards, increase consumer understanding, and reduce instances of greenwashing.
On 28 November 2023, the FCA published its Policy Statement (PS23/16) containing final rules on...more
The FCA has set out good and poor practices for asset managers to consider in relation to funds with ESG or sustainable characteristics.
On 16 November 2023, the FCA published the findings from its review of how asset...more
11/28/2023
/ Asset Management ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Governance Standards ,
Investment Funds ,
Investment Management ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
UK
The EU regulators are reviewing the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation introduced in 2021, exploring the need for potential additional adjustments.
On 14 September 2023, the European Commission initiated a...more
9/27/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Consultation ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Green Finance ,
Investment Products ,
SFDR ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK
The consultation considers what a potential regulatory regime would look like, and its proposed scope.
On 30 March 2023, HM Treasury published a consultation on regulating ESG ratings providers, which ties in with and...more
3/31/2023
/ Consultation ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Green Finance ,
HM Treasury ,
IOSCO ,
Rating Agencies ,
Rating System ,
Ratings ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Third Country Entities (TCEs) ,
UK
The regulator is concerned that ESG-related disclosures are not meeting expectations.
The FCA has published a Dear CEO letter sent to benchmark administrators on 20 March 2023, expressing concerns about the quality of...more
The discussion paper aims to encourage industry-wide dialogue on sustainability related-governance, incentives, and competence.
On 10 February 2023, the FCA published DP23/1: Finance for positive sustainable change:...more
PE firms face growing regulatory and litigation risks from greenwashing claims as they navigate a fragmented anti-greenwashing landscape.
Amid concerns of exaggerated or misleading sustainability claims, the UK Financial...more
1/30/2023
/ Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Greenwashing ,
Investors ,
OECD ,
Portfolio Companies ,
Private Equity ,
Private Equity Firms ,
Reputation Management ,
Risk Alert ,
Sponsors ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
UK
The FCA hopes the proposals will protect consumer trust in ESG-related financial products and help consumers navigate the increasingly complex ESG-related financial market.
On 25 October 2022, the UK’s Financial Conduct...more
The FCA emphasised the increasing prevalence of providers and the potential harm from lack of regulation in this area.
In June 2022, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a Feedback Statement in response to a...more
HM Treasury’s Transition Plan Taskforce aims to influence international standard setting and make the UK the world’s first net zero-aligned financial centre.
On 25 April 2022, HM Treasury (HMT) announced the launch of...more
As the FCA’s remit continues to grow, the regulator pledges flexibility in the face of global financial and geopolitical headwinds.
On 7 April 2022, the FCA released its new Business Plan as part of a package including...more
The association noted that regulators could provide market participants with much-needed additional trust in ESG ratings and data.
On 23 November 2021, the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)...more
11/30/2021
/ Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Information Reports ,
IOSCO ,
Jurisdiction ,
Market Participants ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Ratings ,
Securities Regulation ,
UK
The regulator is inviting views on potential criteria for classifying and labelling investment products, and on further entity- and product-level sustainability-related disclosures.
On 3 November 2021, the FCA published...more
11/5/2021
/ Comment Period ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Institutional Investors ,
Investors ,
Product Labels ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK
The strategy sets out plans to reduce emissions from key sectors of the UK economy to ensure that the UK remains on track for net zero by 2050.
On 19 October 2021, the UK government published its climate change strategy,...more
10/25/2021
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Fuel Supply ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Natural Resources ,
Net Zero ,
Paris Agreement ,
Real Estate Development ,
Transportation Industry ,
UK
The roadmap introduces sustainability disclosure requirements for UK companies and reveals further developments in relation to a UK Green Taxonomy.
On 18 October 2021, the UK government released a report titled “Greening...more
10/21/2021
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Green Finance ,
IFRS ,
Investors ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) ,
UK
Green shoots emerge as PE firms consider new ways to incorporate ESG into dealmaking.
Market sentiment and the increasing importance of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) to firms’ competitiveness across the...more
10/7/2021
/ Climate Change ,
Consultation ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Reporting ,
General Partnerships ,
Limited Partnerships ,
Private Equity ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
SFDR ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
UK
The global asset management community has long been among the leaders in recognising the investment and risk management benefits of tracking the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance of the assets it invests...more
10/4/2021
/ Asset Management ,
Business Strategies ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Germany ,
Global Standards ,
Hong Kong ,
Investment Management ,
Multinationals ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Singapore ,
Sustainability ,
UK
The latest edition of our Private Bank Briefing provides a roundup of legal and compliance issues impacting private banks and their clients from Q3 2021.
In this edition, we include a summary of the latest sustainable...more
9/28/2021
/ Afghanistan ,
AML/CFT ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banks ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Enforcement ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Crimes ,
Green Finance ,
MiFID II ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Packaged Retail And Insurance-Based Investment Products (PRIIPS) ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
FCA has published guiding principles on the design, delivery, and disclosure of ESG and sustainable investment funds.
On 19 July 2021, the FCA published a letter sent to chairs of authorised fund managers, which sets out...more
The latest edition of our Private Bank Briefing provides a roundup of legal and compliance issues impacting private banks and their clients from Q2 2021.
In this edition, we cover sustainable finance developments, the...more
6/29/2021
/ Asset Protection ,
Banking Sector ,
Climate Change ,
Consultation ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Dear CEO Letter ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
FinTech ,
Libor ,
MiFID ,
Outsourcing ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Retail Investors ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK
The FCA is proposing a disclosure regime for asset managers, life insurers, and pension providers.
On 22 June 2021, the FCA published a Consultation Paper (CP21/17) on introducing climate-related financial disclosure...more
6/28/2021
/ AIFM ,
Asset Management ,
Climate Change ,
Consultation ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Insurance Industry ,
Pensions ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) ,
UK
Latest FCA consultation focuses on remuneration, risk management and governance, and liquidity requirements.
Key Points:
The consultation:
..Sets out the FCA’s proposals for the new remuneration rules for FCA...more
4/21/2021
/ Consultation ,
Corporate Governance ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Firms ,
Liquidity ,
MiFID ,
Prudential Standards ,
Remuneration ,
Risk Management ,
Senior Management Regime (SMR) ,
UCITS ,
UK
ESMA reminds firms on rules of reverse solicitation -
In a statement published on 13 January 2021, ESMA reminded firms not established or situated in the EU of the MiFID II requirements on the provision of investment...more
4/1/2021
/ Bank Holding Company ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) ,
CRD V ,
EU ,
European Benchmark Regulation (BMR) ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Libor ,
MiFID II ,
Packaged Retail And Insurance-Based Investment Products (PRIIPS) ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Retail Investors ,
Sustainable Finance ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
FCA found instances of non-compliance with the product governance rules which, in its view, increases the risk of investor harm.
Background -
On 26 February 2021, the FCA published a webpage setting out eight asset...more
3/2/2021
/ Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) ,
Asset Management ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Due Diligence ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Products ,
MiFID II ,
Packaged Retail And Insurance-Based Investment Products (PRIIPS) ,
UCITS ,
UK
The PRA has released a largely positive report, along with nine follow-up actions and recommendations on the SMCR for PRA-regulated firms.
Key Points:
..There is no need for major changes to the SMCR.
..There are...more