On 30 September 2022, the State Bank of Vietnam officially issued Circular No. 12/2022/TT-NHNN providing instructions on foreign exchange administration regarding offshore borrowing and offshore debt repayment of enterprises (“Circular 12”). Circular 12 came into effect on 15 November 2022, replacing Circular No. 03/2016/TT-NHNN and its amending circulars.
On 24 November 2022, the Health Sciences Authority published its Regulatory Guidelines for Laboratory Developed Tests. The new guidelines will come into effect from 1 March 2023. The HSA first published a draft version of the Regulatory Guidelines for LDTs on 12 July 2022. It invited stakeholders to provide feedback on the document, and held a public consultation period from 12 July 2022 to 12 August 2022.
On 14 November 2022, the Health Sciences Authority issued an alert on five products that it found to contain potent medicinal ingredients and informed the public not to purchase such products. Two of the products were obtained from Malaysia through the consumers’ friends and relatives; while the other three were available on local e-commerce platforms. The HSA has worked with the platforms to remove the affected listings.
Following the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 22 November 2022, access to the Luxembourg register of beneficial owners website via the internet has been temporarily suspended. This judgment, taken on a preliminary ruling from the Luxembourg District Court in a dispute between the beneficial owners of an entity registered in Luxembourg and the Luxembourg Business Register, underlines that access without distinction of user quality, although imposed by the text of Directive (EU) 2018/843 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 amending Directive (EU) 2015/849 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing transposed into Luxembourg law, is contrary, in particular, to Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has been strict in monitoring compliance with the new product design and distribution obligations (DDO), which were introduced on 5 October 2021. Under these DDO obligations, issuers are required to design financial products to meet consumer needs and distribute their products in a clearly-defined, targeted manner. To date, seventeen DDO interim stop orders have been issued by ASIC. Nine interim stop orders have been lifted after ASIC’s concerns were addressed by the entities or where the products were withdrawn, and six remain in place.
On 7 November 2022, the Health Sciences Authority issued an update on products that were found by overseas regulators to contain potent ingredients. Such potent ingredients are banned from health products as they may cause certain side effects.
Companies around the world have to comply with the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (VCDPA) with respect to personal data of consumers in Virginia. With the VCDPA, Virginia follows the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018, as amended by the California Consumer Rights Act of 2020, but excludes employee and business representative data from its scope.
In the wake of US Supreme Court precedent in the 2021 AMG Capital Management LLC v. Federal Trade Commission decision, the FTC is doubling down and expanding its enforcement efforts to target executives, directors and owners, including private equity, in an effort to hold accountable anyone profiting from anti-competitive conduct or conduct harmful to consumers. William Roppolo, Ashley Eickhof and Annasofia Roig explores this issue in an article published in Law360.
On 21 November 2022, the Treasury put out a call for submissions to assist with developing the Federal Government’s regulatory framework for buy now, pay later (BNPL) arrangements. The released options paper seeks to address the purported lack of oversight of the BNPL industry which has so far not been regulated in the same way as other forms of consumer credit under the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009. Pending stakeholder review, the paper seeks to strengthen the regulatory framework surrounding BNPL products and depending on the option adopted, may see them subject to the same regulations as credit cards or loan facilities.
The Tax and Legal Breakfasts: Employment seminar at the Baker McKenzie Luxembourg Office on Tuesday 29 November 2022 is designed to give our clients the keys to better apprehend and manage dismissal cases under Luxembourg law. During the seminar, we will cover the traditional questions of the types of dismissal and explain how to build up and manage a case. Furthermore, in a context where employers have difficulties in exercising their power of control over employees working remotely, where harassment claims constantly increase and where employers fear abusive whistleblowing procedures, we will also explain what measures could be implemented or course of action, such as dismissal, taken.
All sessions are complimentary to Baker McKenzie clients and affiliates.