Fraud Newsletter 50 December 2020

January 3, 2021

Fraud Newsletter 50 – December 2020

CASES

Euribor appeal dismissed: suggestion of juror bias

rejected: Bermingham and Palombo [2020] EWCA Crim 1662.

Disclosure and Insider Trading: no legal points but interesting look at insider trading defence and disclosure issues: Abdel-Malek [2020] EWCA Crim 1730. FCA press release: 16 Dec 20.

Search warrant – negative results of earlier searches should have been disclosed, but in context of other information available would have not led to refusal of warrant: R(Jordan) v CC of Merseyside [2020] EWHC 2408 (Admin)

SENTENCING AND CONFISCATION

Private prosecutors entitled to costs out of central funds for enforcement proceedings under POA 1985:

Mirchandani v Lord Chancellor [2020] EWCA Civ 1260.

Press usually entitled to see character references used in mitigation: criteria for anonymization: Elphicke Judiciary (Mrs Justice Whipple, Southwark) 9 Dec 20.

Crown Court Compendium: Part 1 and Part 2 (Sentencing) updated 22 Dec 20.

BILLS, STATUTES & STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS

Financial Services Bill (as amended in Committee stage) 4 Dec 20: includes amendments to Market Abuse Regs (insider dealing and ML) and extending maximum penalties): Explanatory Notes.

Law Enforcement and Security (Separation Issues etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 SI 2020 No. 1408 re police and judicial co-operation. Explanatory Note.

Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 (Commencement No 2) Regulations 2020 SI 2020 No. 1535 bringing into force s49 & Sched 2 – power to make regs re ML & TF detection, investigation and prevention.

CONSULTATIONS, GUIDANCE, CIRCULARS AND REPORTS

Corporate Criminal Liability: HoC Briefing Paper CBP 9027: 18 Dec 20.

Misconduct in Public Office: Law Commission Report:

Law Com No, 397; HC 1027. Summary of Report: 3 Dec 20.

Outcome of investigation into the FCA’s regulation and supervision of LCF (The Gloster Report): HM Treasury: 17 Dec 20. FCA’s response FCA 17 Dec 20.

National risk assessment of money laundering and terrorist financing 2020: HM Treasury Policy paper: 17 Dec 20.

COVID-19-related Money Laundering and Terrorist

Financing  Risks  and  Policy  Responses:  Update:Update: FATF: 16 Dec 20.

Post-Brexit Sanctions regime changes: OFSI blog: 1 Dec 20.

2020 Payment Threats and Fraud Trends Report: EPC (European Payments Council) 7 Dec 20.

The Hidden Costs of CyberCrime: McAfee/CSIS (Centre for Strategic and Internat. Studies): estimated at $1T: 9 Dec 20.

NEWS

Gloster Report reveals FCA’s flaws: failure to “effectively supervise and regulate” London Capital and Finance (LCF) which collapsed with losses for investors: BBC News 17 Dec. 20. Report and FCA response see above.

Bounce Back Loan Fraud 5 times higher than normal levels: Evidence before Treasury Select Committee: Reuters: 14 Dec 20. Risk of UK taxpayer bailout on £26B of Covid Bounce Back Loans: not possible to determine proportion of credit risk to fraud: Public Account Committee Summary: HoC 10 Dec 20: Full Report: HC 687: 16 Dec 20.

 Ex-Barclays traders’ appeals for conspiracy to rig Euribor rates dismissed: no real possibility of juror bias: Reuters 9 Dec 20.

Liverpool mayor arrested in bribery probe (Operation Aloft): BBC News: 4 Dec 20. 4 others arrested including Derek Hatton, former deputy leader of Liverpool City Council: The Times 5 Dec 20.

Biggest UK cyber scammer (£113m – Freezan Hameed Choudhary – 11 years on 24 Sep 2016: The Times) confiscation appeal refused: 4 Dec 20.

First 6 convictions of subpostmasters quashed at Southwark after recognition of Horizon software accounting failures: Computer Weekly: 11 Dec 20. Approximately 40 more to be heard unopposed in CA.

FCA:

Barclays fined £26m over treatment of customers in financial difficulty: 15 Dec 20

 Response to London Capital Report: 17 Dec 20

 Charles Schwab fined £8.96m over safeguarding and compliance failures: 21 Dec 20

 HOME:

 21 arrests in nationwide cyber crackdown: NCA 25 Dec 20

 Investment scams have quadrupled since July: £9.4m

ABROAD:

 Bribes paid to private individuals will no longer be tax deductible in Switzerland as from 1 Jan 2022: Ethics & Compliance: 25 Nov 20.

World’s Largest Oil Traders Caught In Global Corruption Scandal: OilPrice: 19 Dec 20.

SEC orders Bluecrest Capital Management (a British hedge fund) to pay $170m to investors for “failing to act in best interests of its investors”: MarketWatch: 8 Dec 20. SEC Findings and order: 8 Dec 20.

Massive cyber breach of US Government including US Treasury and departments of homeland security, state, defence and commerce. Back doors smuggled into systems and operating for many months. Russian state hackers suspected: BBC News 15 Dec 20. NCSC (National Cyber Security Council – part of GCHQ) assessing extent of impact on UK: BBC News 18 Dec 20. Regular updated guidance: Dealing with the SolarWinds Orion Compromise: NCSC

Corporate Transparency Act passed by US Congress:

identifies beneficial owners: The National law Review 15 Dec 20.