We are well known advisers to individuals and companies in the financial services industry who find themselves under the spotlight for regulatory or criminal matters.
Our clients have included senior management in banks, traders, hedge fund managers, brokerage houses, London branches of overseas institutions, wealth managers and administrators, mortgage brokers, investors and company advisers as well as IFAs, fintech companies, cryptocurrency providers, accountancy firms, insurers, FDs and CFOs within corporates amongst others.
The financial services sector has long been highly regulated. Since the 2008 financial crisis, however, scrutiny, regulation and intervention have increased substantially with the Government demanding greater accountability and regulators needing to be seen to take a tougher and more proactive approach.
As a result, in recent years we have seen record levels of fines and a rise in prohibitions and restrictions against individuals and companies in the industry for regulatory misconduct and disciplinary breaches.
Investigations in the financial services sector are conducted by a number of agencies, including:
- The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
- The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA)
- The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)
- The Serious Fraud Office (SFO)
- City of London Police (CoLP)
- HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
- The Financial Reporting Council (FRC)
Parties based in the UK may also find themselves subject to multi-jurisdictional investigations, involving the US Department of Justice (DOJ), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and/or other international regulators and prosecutors.
We have an established and highly experienced team of defence lawyers representing individuals and companies from all parts of the financial world on regulatory and criminal issues.
We provide intelligent and tactical representation to protect and advance the interests of those under investigation and have been involved in a wide-range of matters from technical regulatory beaches to complex criminal trials. We are widely considered the go-to firm for those in the financial sector facing potential criminal action.
Please see below for more information about the specialist services we offer or contact a member of our Financial Services team:
- FCA investigations
- Tax investigations
- SFO/fraud related investigations
- Investigation by accounting regulators (such as the FRC; ICAEW, ACCA and CIPFA)