Financial Services criminal offences, investigations, prosecutions

This Overview is a guide to the LexisNexis Financial Services subtopic Financial Services criminal offences, investigations and prosecutions, and includes links to appropriate materials. This sub-topic considers the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)’s powers in respect of criminal offences and the FCA’s investigatory process into alleged criminal wrongdoing. It also considers the role of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in investigating financial crime in the financial services sector and provides detail on deferred prosecution agreements (DPAs). The news tab in this sub-topic provides a history of FCA criminal prosecutions and SFO prosecutions relevant to financial services firms.

Practical guidance on FCA enforcement involving non-criminal matters (including financial crime compliance breaches) can be found in: FCA and PRA investigations, enforcement and discipline—overview.

Overview

The FCA has powers to prosecute a number of criminal offences, including contravening the general prohibition, and offences related to market abuse and money laundering failings. The FCA is increasingly focused on its criminal powers, particularly since Steve Smart, formerly of the National Crime Agency became the FCA’s joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight. In June 2024, Smart stated:

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Latest Financial Services News

FMSB publishes Final Standard for Client Onboarding: Documentation and Processes

The Financial Markets Standards Board (FMSB) has published its final ‘Standard for Client Onboarding: Documentation and Process’ and related Annexes. The Standard seeks to harmonise the data and documents required from clients, as well as codifying elements of best practice in the interaction between clients and onboarding firms, to create greater efficiency. Drafted to allow onboarding firms to continue to fully apply the UK’s Risk Based Approach to KYC, the Standard provides more granular guidance for the practical implementation of the UK Money Laundering Regulations (UK MLRs). The FMSB will continue to monitor developments in the UK MLRs and other applicable regulation and guidance and update the Standard as required.

BoE welcomes API Panel of Expert recommendations to enhance cross-border payments

The Bank of England (BoE) has welcomed recommendations by the API Panel of Experts (APEX) for the development of payment APIs. The recommendations were published in the October 2024 report to the G20 by the Bank for International Settlements’ Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI): ‘Promoting the harmonisation of application programming interfaces to enhance cross-border payments: recommendations and toolkit’. The BoE views the recommendations and their associated action items as a timely and practical push for increased harmonisation of APIs in cross-border payments which is in line with the objectives of the G20’s cross-border payments programme.

PRA corrects error in Solvency II standard formula mass lapse life underwriting risk rule

The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has published a statement stating that it has identified and rectified an error in the recently published Solvency II restatement of assimilated law. The error was in rule 3B6.6(1) in the Solvency Capital Requirement - Standard Formula (SCR-SF) Part of the PRA Rulebook published in Policy Statement 15/24. The rule incorrectly included a reference to Regulated Activities Order (RAO) Schedule 1, Part II, class III ('Linked long-term') business, which should be subject to a 70% stress for mass lapse life underwriting risk. The rule instrument correcting the error will take effect on 31 December 2024.

FCA publishes Handbook Notice 125

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published Handbook Notice 125 which describes the changes made to the FCA Handbook and other materials by the FCA Board and its Executive Regulation and Policy Committee under their legislative and statutory powers on 9 December 2024, 13 December 2024 and 19 December 2024. The changes effected through several instruments take effect on various dates commencing on 20 December 2024.

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