The Home Office published their long-awaited guidance on the new failure to prevent fraud offence on 6 November 2024. The FTPF Offence, introduced by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, allows for large organizations to be held criminally liable where their employees, agents, subsidiaries, or other “associated persons” commit a base fraud offence intending to benefit the organization or its clients, and it is determined the organization failed to implement “reasonable fraud prevention procedures”. All large, incorporated bodies and partnerships are in scope of the FTPF Offence, and it applies both to UK-based organizations and organizations based abroad with a UK nexus. The Government also announced that the FTPF Offence will come into force on 1 September 2025.

Having not secured a deferred prosecution agreement in respect of U.K. Bribery Act offences since 2021 and having been rocked by a series of shortcomings regarding its investigation and prosecution of cases, the SFO has arguably been at its lowest ebb.

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023. The Act is a landmark development in the UK Government’s long-standing efforts to enhance the UK’s economic crime enforcement framework, and the Act introduces a number of important measures designed to improve corporate transparency and tackle economic crime in the UK
and abroad.

Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled  Wagner is proscribed by the UK government on 15 September 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.

Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled UK: General Trade Licence (Legal Advisory Services) relating to UK Russia sanctions has been issued on 21 August 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.

Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled UK Government considers proscription of Wagner as a terrorist organisation under the Terrorism Act 2000 on 25 August 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.

In brief The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) plays a key role in monitoring how UK-regulated financial institutions guard against financial crime risks, and how effectively they implement financial crime policies and procedures. In recent months, as the UK and other governments have placed increasing focus on preventing the circumvention…

Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation updates oil price cap guidance and issues derivatives general licence on 6 July 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.  

Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled Further amendments to UK Russia Sanctions on 21 June 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.  

The UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) has updated its guidance on enforcement and monetary penalties for breaches of financial sanctions to include a number of paragraphs setting out OFSI’s expectations around the nature and type of due diligence that companies should undertake when assessing whether an entity is owned or controlled by one or more designated persons, for sanctions purposes.