On April 6, 2021, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law Senate Bill 297B/Assembly Bill 164B, the long anticipated New York State legislation addressing the cessation of U.S. Dollar LIBOR.
Client Alert | April 8, 2021
On March 5, 2021, regulators and industry groups provided market participants with much anticipated clarity by announcing the dates for the cessation of publication of, and non-representativeness of, various settings of the London Interbank Offered Rate which will allow market participants to identify the date that their financial instruments and commercial agreements that reference LIBOR will transition to an alternative reference rate (e.g., a risk free rate).
Client Alert | March 9, 2021
On February 26, 2021, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System issued a Supervision and Regulation letter containing its final supervisory guidance on the effectiveness of a banking institution’s board of directors. The Guidance applies to bank holding companies and savings-and-loan holding companies with total consolidated assets of $100 billion or more, with the exception of intermediate holding companies of foreign banking organizations. A separate Supervision and Regulation letter issued the same day revised twelve prior Supervision and Regulation letters touching on the subject and made nine additional prior Supervision and Regulation letters inactive.
Client Alert | March 3, 2021
On February 18, 2021, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control, an agency of the Treasury Department that administers and enforces U.S. economic and trade sanctions, issued an enforcement release of a settlement agreement with BitPay, Inc. for apparent violations relating to Bitpay’s payment processing solution that allows merchants to accept digital currency as payment for goods and services. OFAC found that BitPay allowed users apparently located in sanctioned countries and areas to transact with merchants in the United States and elsewhere using the BitPay platform, even though BitPay had Internet Protocol address data for those users. The users in sanctioned countries were not BitPay’s direct customers, but rather its customer’s customers (in this case the merchants’ customers).
Client Alert | February 24, 2021
London partners Michelle Kirschner and Matthew Nunan are the authors of "Reverse solicitation: a shot across the bow," first published by Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence on February 10, 2021.
Article | February 17, 2021
Now that the first 100 days of the Biden Administration are in full swing, its financial regulatory priorities are becoming clearer. In this Client Alert, we discuss where we expect the Administration to focus, with respect to the banking, fintech, and derivatives sectors.
Client Alert | February 16, 2021
The New York State Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) is the state’s primary regulator of financial institutions and activity, with jurisdiction over approximately 1,500 financial institutions and 1,800 insurance companies. Gibson Dunn lawyers summarize recent key developments regarding the agency.
Client Alert | February 2, 2021
In this webcast, a panel of Gibson Dunn lawyers in London provides a review of UK financial services regulatory developments in 2020, and what these developments indicate about the future regulatory direction of travel.
Webcasts | January 27, 2021
On January 13, 2021, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency conditionally approved the charter conversion application for Anchorage Trust Company, permitting Anchorage to become a national trust bank. This is the first approval by the OCC of a virtual currency firm’s becoming a federally regulated banking institution and demonstrates the ongoing leadership that the OCC has shown with respect to virtual currency issues. Although this development is significant in and of itself, the Anchorage approval relies on a new OCC Chief Counsel’s Interpretation, released as OCC Interpretive Letter 1176, that substantially increases the trust powers of national banks, making them a more attractive business model generally and particularly for fintech firms.
Client Alert | January 25, 2021
On 7 January 2021, the Joint Committee of the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) wrote to the European Commission, requesting “urgent” clarification on several important areas of uncertainty in the application of Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 on sustainability-related disclosures in the financial services sector prior to the application of the majority of its requirements on 10 March 2021.
Client Alert | January 21, 2021
In their 2020 year-end review, Gibson Dunn lawyers assess the UK financial regulatory landscape through the prism of three areas of increasing regulatory focus: governance, culture and individual accountability; conduct and enforcement; and operational and financial resilience.
Client Alert | January 14, 2021
Washington, D.C. counsel Roscoe Jones Jr., New York partner Joel Cohen, Washington, D.C. partner Michael Bopp, New York partner Arthur Long, Washington, D.C. partner Jeffrey Steiner, Washington, D.C. associate Samantha Ostrom, Orange County associate Maggie Zhang and San Francisco associate Alexandra Farmer are the authors of "Financial Policy in the Incoming Biden Administration: What Can We Expect?" published by Wall Street Lawyer in its December 2020 issue.
Article | January 8, 2021
After a complicated path to passage, on January 1, 2021 the Senate completed the override of President Trump’s veto of the National Defense Authorization Act and, as part of that legislation, passed the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020. The AMLA is the most comprehensive set of reforms to the anti-money laundering laws in the United States since the USA PATRIOT Act was passed in 2001. The Act’s provisions range from requiring many smaller companies to disclose beneficial ownership information to FinCEN to mandating awards to whistleblowers that report actionable information about Bank Secrecy Act/AML violations.
Client Alert | January 1, 2021
In this webcast, Gibson Dunn provides a discussion regarding the latest developments and trends in anti-money laundering and sanctions laws, regulations, and enforcement.
Webcasts | December 10, 2020
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) continues to show a desire to take action in sectors of the financial services industry where there has been traditionally less supervisory oversight and to push the importance of firm’s internal governance and oversight structures.
Client Alert | December 2, 2020
On November 30, 2020, ICE Benchmark Administration, the administrator of LIBOR, with the support of the Federal Reserve Board and the UK Financial Conduct Authority, announced plans to consult on specific timing for the path forward to cease the publication of USD LIBOR. In particular, IBA plans to consult on ceasing the publication of USD LIBOR on December 31, 2021 for only the one week and two month USD LIBOR tenors, and on June 30, 2023 for all other USD LIBOR tenors (i.e., overnight, one month, three month, six month and 12 month tenors).
Client Alert | December 1, 2020
On November 20, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) proposed a rule to require large national banks and federal savings associations to offer and provide “fair access” to financial services.
Client Alert | November 30, 2020
Many UK regulated firms will be currently (re-)assessing staff as fit and proper and training staff on the FCA’s (or the PRA’s) Conduct Rules. The FCA has recently banned three individuals from working in the financial services industry for non-financial misconduct outside the workplace.
Client Alert | November 13, 2020
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published a final notice detailing enforcement action taken against a Hong Kong asset manager for short selling disclosure rule breaches under the Short Selling Regulation (SSR).
Client Alert | November 10, 2020
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is pleased to announce that Matthew Nunan has joined the firm’s London office as a partner. Nunan, formerly a Managing Director and EMEA Head of Conduct Risk at Morgan Stanley, will focus on complex contentious financial regulatory investigations and disputes.
Press Releases | November 2, 2020
Since the 2016 presidential election, there have been several regulatory developments that go to the heart of the U.S. dual banking system – the quintessentially American system under which banking entities may choose either a state or federal charter. Gibson Dunn lawyers discuss potential issues for the 2020 U.S. election, specifically the extent of state-federal regulatory balance and the degree of judicial control over federal regulatory actions.
Client Alert | October 28, 2020
New York partner Arthur Long is the author of "After a Decade, What is Settled About Dodd-Frank?" published by the American Bar Association's Banking Law Committee Journal in September 2020.
Article | October 23, 2020
On September 25, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law the California Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL), which was passed by the state legislature on August 31, 2020.
Client Alert | October 13, 2020
On September 21, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued an interpretive letter that concluded that national banks may hold deposits that serve as reserves for certain stablecoin issuers.
Client Alert | September 29, 2020
One of the thornier areas of law for U.S.-regulated banks and their holding companies is that regarding confidential supervisory information (CSI). Gibson Dunn lawyers discuss two recent meaningful developments in the law regarding CSI.
Client Alert | September 22, 2020
The ongoing coronavirus has caused governments and populations to rethink how to conduct social interactions and in turn how to conduct business on a global scale. Despite the ongoing global public health crisis, the United States Government’s efforts to use its economic leverage to conduct foreign policy continues unabated. Indeed, throughout the first half of 2020, the United States continued to tighten the screws on Iran and Venezuela and has not shied away from using its economic arsenal in its escalating trade war with China.
Client Alert | August 4, 2020
The Senior Managers and Certification Regime has applied to Financial Conduct Authority-solo regulated firms since 9 December 2019. This client alert provides a brief overview of the key changes that firms should have already implemented, summarizes key lessons from the FCA’s approach to enforcement of the regime against the banks, and details the steps that firms should be undertaking prior to the extended deadline of 31 March 2021.
Client Alert | July 23, 2020
In this one-hour webcast, three experienced Gibson Dunn practitioners explain key developments at the New York State Department of Financial Services as of July 2020.
Webcasts | July 9, 2020
On June 25, 2020, the five regulatory agencies responsible for implementing the Dodd-Frank Act’s Volcker Rule finalized their rulemaking, substantially revising the “covered funds” provisions of the regulation.
Client Alert | July 7, 2020
On June 10, 2020, Mr Justice Trower, sitting in the English High Court, handed down his judgment in A v B [2020] EWHC 1491 (Ch). The judgment addressed the treatment of privileged documents that had been disclosed to an auditor by their clients under a limited waiver, with a finding that it was for the auditors (and not their clients) to decide, objectively, if the relevant materials could be withheld on the grounds of privilege, or should be disclosed to the Financial Reporting Council.
Client Alert | June 25, 2020
EMIR Refit came into force on 17 June 2019 with the aim of amending the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) to address “disproportionate compliance costs, transparency issues and insufficient access to clearing for certain counterparties”.
Client Alert | June 12, 2020
On 27 May 2020, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”) published Market Watch 63 (“MW63”). MW63 highlights that market participants (including issuers, their advisers and all other market participants) may be subject to new and emerging market conduct risks as a result of the current increase in primary market activity and working from home arrangements widely mandated as a result of public policy to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. It then sets out the FCA’s expectations on market participants in terms of identifying and mitigating those risks in the current environment.
Client Alert | May 28, 2020
On May 8, 2020, the Department of the Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) again extended the Geographic Targeting Order (GTO) requiring title insurance companies to report non-financed purchases of residential real estate in certain major metropolitan areas.
Client Alert | May 18, 2020
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) has issued statements to financial services firms outlining its expectations on: (i) financial crime systems and controls; and (ii) information security, during the COVID-19 pandemic. These are further examples of the FCA requiring firms to take steps to prevent and/or limit harm to consumers and the market more generally in this challenging period.
Client Alert | May 11, 2020
On May 7, 2020, the European Commission announced an action plan of measures designed to pursue what will likely constitute a fundamental reshaping of how rules relating to anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) are implemented, overseen and enforced in the EU.
Client Alert | May 11, 2020
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) recently announced the publication of substantial revisions to the first section of its Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering Examination Manual regarding the BSA/AML examination process and the examination of a bank’s overall BSA/AML program.
Client Alert | April 27, 2020
In light of the significant impact of COVID-19, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), like many other regulatory authorities globally, has introduced a number of temporary measures impacting financial services firms.
Client Alert | April 23, 2020
In this client alert we summarise: (i) the announcement of details on the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (the “CLBILS”); and (ii) the announcement of a new funding scheme for innovative companies that are facing financing difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic (the “Innovation and Development Scheme”).
Client Alert | April 22, 2020
Since the early stages of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, U.S. financial regulators have issued a flurry of guidance. This Alert analyzes select guidance from regulators to date on three key issues: (1) the additional planning that financial institutions should undertake going forward, (2) how financial institutions should adjust day-to-day banking operations during coronavirus, including complying with their Bank Secrecy Act/anti-money laundering (“BSA/AML”) obligations, and (3) how COVID-19 affects oversight of financial institutions, including supervisory priorities and deadlines.
Client Alert | April 21, 2020
The European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) has published a public statement[1] detailing actions to mitigate fund managers’ reporting obligations. This client alert provides EU alternative fund managers (“AIFMs”), and non-EU AIFMs marketing their funds in the EU, with an overview of the impact of the public statement on the obligation to publish an annual report for the funds they manage.
Client Alert | April 14, 2020
On April 9, 2020, the Federal Reserve announced that it would establish two new facilities to promote lending to businesses with up to 10,000 employees or up to $2.5 billion in 2019 annual revenue. The Federal Reserve also announced a lending facility for depository institutions that originate loans under the CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
Client Alert | April 9, 2020
On April 9, 2020, the Federal Reserve announced that it was expanding three of the facilities created earlier this spring in reaction to the economic dislocation caused by COVID-19: the Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility (PMCCF), the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF) and the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF).
Client Alert | April 9, 2020
On 3 April 2020, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) published a statement setting out its expectations of FCA solo-regulated firms under the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (“SMCR”) during the COVID-19 outbreak. This client alert provides FCA solo-regulated firms with an overview of the FCA’s SMCR-related expectations.
Client Alert | April 6, 2020
The UK Government has announced a series of measures to support public services, people and businesses through this period of severe - but temporary - disruption caused by COVID-19. The Government’s measures are a mixture of tax relief, financing and support towards the cost of employees. Further clarity on the Government’s plans and practical processes for taking advantage of the support is expected to be provided as the days progress.
Client Alert | April 6, 2020
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) has made clarifications to its previous announcement on 16 March regarding the European Securities and Markets Authority’s (“ESMA’s”) decision concerning temporary amendments to short selling notification thresholds under the Short Selling Regulation (“SSR”). The FCA will now be ready to receive notifications at the lower threshold from 6 April 2020.
Client Alert | April 1, 2020
On 31 March 2020, the European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) issued a public statement[1] to clarify issues regarding the publication by execution venues and firms of best execution reports required by RTS 27 and RTS 28 of MiFID II. This client alert provides an overview of ESMA’s public statement and its consequences for execution venues and firms.
Client Alert | April 1, 2020
In late March 2020, the Federal Reserve announced that it was delaying the effective date of its new framework for analyzing “control” under the Bank Holding Company Act by two quarters, to September 30, 2020.
Client Alert | March 31, 2020
On March 25, 2020, the German Parliament (Bundestag) passed a far reaching rescue package to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and its dramatic economic effects.
Client Alert | March 27, 2020
The UK Government has launched two funding mechanisms to assist firms with the potential impact of COVID-19 on their businesses: the Covid Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF) and the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). Gibson Dunn lawyers provide an overview of the CCFF and CBILS and provides practical guidance as to how firms can make use of these facilities.
Client Alert | March 27, 2020
On March 24, 2020, the New York Department of Financial Services promulgated emergency regulations implementing a recent executive order issued by Governor Cuomo. The order aims to ensure that banks grant 90-day forbearances for borrowers that are suffering financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Client Alert | March 25, 2020