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In a speech on 22 May 2018, the FCA revealed that 2,100 firms, including all the major banks and life insurers, had responded to the annual financial crime data return by 31 December 2017.

The Data Protection Act 2018 replaces the Data Protection Act 1998 and provides a comprehensive legal framework for data protection in the UK, supplemented by the GDPR until the UK leaves the EU.

The Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 creates a new sanctions regime for the UK after Brexit, needed to keep UK Anti-Money Laundering (“AML”) and Counter-Terrorist Financing (“CTF”) measures up to date.

Due to changes brought about by MiFID II, the FCA is retiring FG12/15 on independent and restricted advice and FG14/1 on inducements and conflicts of interest.

ESMA provides a one-stop company portal for investors seeking information on whether a financial service provider is authorised within the EU.

GDPR removes the requirement for data controllers to register with the ICO; however, new regulations require all data controllers to continue paying the ICO an annual fee.

A fifth revision of the Anti-Money-Laundering Directive has been adopted by the European Parliament; EU Member States will have up to 26 months to transpose these new rules once the 5th AMLD is published in the Official Journal.

The FCA are consulting on changes to the Financial Crime Guide to keep it up to date, proposing to add a chapter on insider dealing and market manipulation and make miscellaneous changes.

In its Business Plan for 2018/19, the FCA shows mitigating the effect of Brexit is its key priority for the coming year, supplemented by seven priorities across the financial sectors it regulates and other priorities within each of those seven sectors.

FCA warns it will take action against general insurance firms which are failing to clearly show the insurance premium a customer paid last year alongside their proposed renewal premium and to encourage customers to shop around.

ESMA has published the first part of its Technical Advice under the new Prospectus Regulation, covering the areas of format and content of a prospectus (including the Universal Registration Document), the EU Growth prospectus and the scrutiny and approval of a prospectus.

The FCA has published new rules on pension transfer advice and is seeking views on additional changes, including adviser charging structures. The new rules and areas for discussion aim to improve the quality of pension transfer advice to help consumers make informed decisions for their individual circumstances.

ESMA has announced a ban on the provision of binary options to retail investors in the EU and placed restrictions on the provision of contracts for differences, including rolling spot forex and financial spread bets, to retail investors in the EU. The FCA supports ESMA’s application of EU-wide temporary product intervention measures and expects to consult on whether to apply these measures on a permanent basis.

Are you ready? On 25 May 2018, the GDPR will come into effect for all firms operating within Europe as well as firms outside of Europe which have data come in from, go through, or end up in, the European Union. As part of this regulation, individuals will be afforded enhanced rights regarding their data.

ESMA has updated its Q&As on the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive and Regulation, the Market Abuse Regulation, the Benchmarks Regulation, and the Central Securities Depository Regulation

The Draft UK EU Withdrawal Agreement published on 19 March 2018 contains no mention of the financial services industry whilst confirming that the transitional period will last from Brexit day on 29 March 2019 until 31 December 2020.

The European Commission (“EC”) have published a proposed directive and a proposed regulation amending Directive 2011/61/EU on Alternative Investment Fund Managers (“AIFMs”) and Directive 2009/65/EC on undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (“UCITS”) to facilitate cross-border marketing of funds, including pre-marketing under the AIFM Directive.

The date and time of the publication of the SONIA benchmark is changing on Monday 23 April 2018. Friday 20 April 2018 will be the final day for which SONIA will be calculated and published by the Wholesale Market Brokers’ Association (“WMBA”) using the current methodology.

Over the summer of 2018, the London offices of the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) are relocating from 25 The North Colonnade, Canary Wharf, London E14 5HS and 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14, to a new location in The International Quarter of Stratford: 12 Endeavour Square, London E20 1JN.

The Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”), via a specific webpage entitled ‘Survey for EEA inbound passported firms’, are asking all firms they solely regulate that passport into the UK (either via a branch or on a cross-border services basis) or market funds in the UK to complete a short online survey.