The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), alongside the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), has today published new rules in relation to whistleblowing. These changes follow recommendations in 2013 by the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards (PCBS) that banks put in place mechanisms to allow their employees to raise concerns internally (i.e. to ‘blow the whistle’) and that they appoint a senior person to take responsibility for the effectiveness of these arrangements.

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by Evert-Jan Lammers

Last week Transparency International (TI) has announced its global Strategy 2020. One of the focal points of the strategy is “More prevention”. TI Greece’s representative was serious when he joked: “More prevention until 2020 is not enough for Greece. I need two generations to achieve real change.” He hit the nail on the head. A non-governmental organization better spends its time and money on the next generation than on the current one.

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The EU-US data protection “Umbrella agreement ” negotiations are finalised and the agreement has just been intitialled. It puts in place a comprehensive high-level data protection framework for EU-US law enforcement cooperation. The Agreement covers all personal data (for example names, addresses, criminal records) exchanged between the EU and the U.S. for the purpose of prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of criminal offences, including terrorism.
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), alongside the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), has today published near final rules confirming how it will apply the new accountability regime to UK branches of overseas banks, and also confirms reforms to the approved persons regime for Solvency II firms.

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Michel Klompmaker

Russia is one of the world’s economic powerhouses, home to many multinational corporations (MNCs) and set to enact a new, very specific data management law this year. From September 1st 2015, law #242 will come into force, affecting existing laws #149, #152 and #294 respectively, all of which focus on data, information and its protection and confidentiality of Russian Citizens.

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The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published an Opinion to the European Union (EU) institutions on the impact of EMIR on UCITS. In the opinion, ESMA calls for a modification of the UCITS Directive to take into account the clearing obligations for certain types of over-the-counter (OTC) financial derivative transactions under EMIR.
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by Andy Scherpenberg

VAT carousels, intentional road collisions to defraud the insurance companies, ‘man in the browser’ technology that intercepts your financial transactions and modifies both amount and account number while you are still seeing the usual transaction screens: fraud has permeated every sector and is taking new forms and shapes. Fraudsters are becoming smarter by the day and they have access to more and more resources. In a previous blog post you could already get a sense if the impressive weaponry that the fraudsters have at their disposal. Continue reading…

by Andy Scherpenberg

VAT carousels, intentional road collisions to defraud the insurance companies, ‘man in the browser’ technology that intercepts your financial transactions and modifies both amount and account number while you are still seeing the usual transaction screens: fraud has permeated every sector and is taking new forms and shapes. Fraudsters are becoming smarter by the day and they have access to more and more resources. An overview.

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by Jos Feyaert

The battle against Tax erosion and the black economy can be fought by repression and heavy administrative control mechanisms and technologies as the white registers in restaurants and pubs. In Belgian we know what efforts have to be brought before it can be implemented. But why we don’t fight (at least partially) against it by using modern digital gamification technics, based on encouraging users (the crowd of clients) for asking for getting official invoices and bills from their suppliers. To be sure that the documents are not only issued, but also be registered and declared to the tax-authorities, one could organize a national lottery based upon the registered invoices.

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The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) launched yesterday a consultation on draft guidelines on complex debt instruments and structured deposits. These guidelines are intended to enhance investor protection by offering further clarification on which types of financial instruments and structured deposits can be provided, that all the relevant legal conditions are fulfilled, without the firm assessing a client’s knowledge and experience (i.e. to carry out an appropriateness test).

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