UK Finance has reported the sentencing of student Ho Yin Hoey Tai after he pleaded guilty to six counts of fraud by false representation, two counts of possession of an identity document with improper intent and one count of conspiracy to commit fraud. UK Finance has reported that between 23 March–14 April 2022, Tai used falsified identity documents to impersonate three bank customers and attempted to change personal details on the accounts. Further evidence found on Tai’s phone following his arrest showed that Tai was working with others to actively take over high value bank accounts using false documentation, resulting in losses to two victims totalling over £213,000. UK Finance has said that Tai was apprehended following an investigation by a specialist police unit, the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit. Tai was sentenced at Winchester Crown Court to two years and two months’ imprisonment.

UK Finance has published its 2025 Half Year Fraud Report revealing that £629.3m was stolen by criminals in the first six months of 2025, marking a 3% increase in losses and a 17% rise in fraud cases compared with the same period in 2024.

UK Finance has submitted its response to the Cabinet Office's consultation on proposed changes to the National Security and Investment Act (Notifiable Acquisition) (Specification of Qualifying Entities) Regulations 2021. Representing around 300 financial services firms, UK Finance welcomes the proposed exclusions for certain internal reorganisations and the introduction of new standalone sector definitions for critical minerals and semiconductors. However, it has criticised the consultation as a ‘missed opportunity for more meaningful change’. UK Finance advocates wider reforms, including carve-outs for UK domestic investors, the introduction of de minimis thresholds, and increased transparency in the government’s decision-making processes.

UK Finance has published its response to the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) consultation on aligning sustainability-related disclosures with international standards, supporting the proposal to embed the UK Sustainability Reporting Standards (SRS) within the Listing Rules and align with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) baseline, while emphasising the importance of international consistency and comparability. It welcomes the proposed ‘comply or explain’ approach but calls for greater clarity on the FCA’s future plans, including whether this framework will remain or transition to mandatory compliance. The response also highlights the need to consider the impact on the competitiveness of UK listings and the wider corporate reporting framework, and states that the FCA should adopt a proportionate and supportive supervisory approach, particularly in the early stages of implementation, noting that firms may rely on best endeavours as they build capability. In addition, UK Finance emphasises that the ‘explain’ element should not be regarded as non-compliance and does not support the introduction of mandatory assurance requirements at this stage, suggesting that any future requirement should be subject to consultation and phased implementation.

UK Finance has submitted its response to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) consultation paper CP25/20, expressing strong support for eliminating the systematic internaliser (SI) regime for non-equities. Working in collaboration with Linklaters, the response also addresses the equity market structure. It endorses the current competitive landscape while advocating for the establishment of a UK equity consolidated tape that incorporates both pre- and post-trade data. Additionally, UK Finance stresses the importance of maintaining regulatory flexibility for investment banks’ bilateral trading activities.

UK Finance has responded to HMRC’s July 2026 technical consultation on draft legislation concerning crypto loans and liquidity pools, taxation of stablecoins and reforms to civil tax information and inspection powers. UK Finance members support proposals to simplify the tax treatment of stablecoins and better align it with their use for payments but call for clear guidance before the new rules take effect. They say businesses and consumers need certainty on which stablecoins qualify, how the transition will operate and how returns should be taxed and reported, including across borders. UK Finance notes that treating stablecoin returns as interest and bringing them within accounting-based rules will have implications for withholding tax, treaty relief, reporting and anti-avoidance provisions. It also calls for clear limits, practical safeguards and continued oversight in relation to HMRC’s proposed wider powers to request information from businesses.

UK Finance has published its response to HMRC’s July 2026 consultation on simplifying the process for obtaining treaty relief from withholding tax on interest paid overseas. UK Finance supports a hybrid approach under which self-assessment would be available for clearly defined, low-risk cases, while an optional advance-clearance facility would remain available for complex, high-value or novel arrangements. It says that any reform should preserve certainty for businesses and avoid replacing existing administrative requirements with increased compliance and evidential burdens for UK payers. UK Finance also calls for simplification of the existing Double Taxation Treaty Passport scheme and urges HMRC to ensure that any future framework recognises the distinct operational realities of intercompany funding and institutional third-party lending, including the specific friction points affecting institutional lenders.

UK Finance has updated its mortgage lenders' handbook for conveyancers which will be relaunched on 29 June 2026. The updated handbook features enhanced functionality and improved user experience, along with changes in access to the handbook. Conveyancers and solicitors are encouraged to pre-register their firms. The handbook provides comprehensive instructions for conveyancers acting on behalf of lenders in residential conveyancing, with separate parts for general instructions (part 1), lender-specific instructions (part 2), and standard instructions for England & Wales, when a conveyancer represents only the lender (part 3). Participation in the scheme is voluntary and not all lenders choose to adopt the handbook.

This Practice Note is a horizon scanner tracking key future developments in the UK’s free trade agreements. It provides details of key dates for your diary (including forecasted dates where the actual date is unknown) and relevant commentary in relation to: • Free trade agreement negotiations ◦ launch of negotiations ◦ policy approach to negotiations ◦ trade negotiation rounds ◦ agreement in principle ◦ signature • Ratification of free trade agreements ◦ parliamentary approval ◦ legislative amendment • Entry into force ◦ exchange of ratification instruments ◦ activation of tariff schedules ◦ activation of commitment schedules—this takes many forms but usually speaks to regulatory/legislative amendments Free trade agreement negotiations What’s happening? When? What’s the impact? Find out more Notes to SPI UK and Malaysia

STOP PRESS: On 19 June 2025, the Data (Use and Access) Bill received Royal Assent, becoming the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (DUAA 2025) and coming partly into force on that date. Certain provisions of DUAA 2025, concerning matters such as responding to data subject access requests and the conferring of power to make further regulations, came into force immediately on 19 June 2025. Other provisions, concerning notices from the Information Commissioner and some aspects of law enforcement processing, came into effect on 19 August 2025 (being two months from the date of Royal Assent). The majority of DUAA 2025’s provisions require further regulations (in the form of statutory instruments) to be made to bring them into force. Parts 5 and 6 of DUAA 2025 serve to amend aspects of data protection and ePrivacy law in the UK, including the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003, SI 2003/2426. The majority of the provisions

This Practice Note provides a high-level overview of the provisions relating to extra-territorial reach and the appointment of representatives under: • the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2016/679(EU GDPR) regime, and • the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679(UK GDPR) regime (applicable under UK law from the end of the Brexit implementation period on 31 December 2020) Assimilated law is the name given to retained EU law (REUL) which remains in force after the end of 2023. The re-categorisation of REUL (and associated terms) to assimilated law reflects a change in its status and treatment under UK law, in that it is generally to be interpreted according to ordinary domestic law and principles. From 1 January 2024, REUL is ‘assimilated’ into domestic law by virtue of the fact it is generally stripped of EU-derived interpretive effects (eg supremacy of EU law, directly effective rights, and general principles previously retained under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018). For more information, see Practice Note: Assimilated law and News Analysis:

This Practice Note introduces the approach to sanctions and enforcement under: • the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (EU GDPR) regime (which was applicable under UK law until the end of the Brexit implementation period at 11 pm UK time on 31 December 2020 and remains applicable in EEA states thereafter), and • the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (UK GDPR) regime (applicable under UK law from the end of the Brexit implementation period on 31 December 2020). Assimilated law is the name given to retained EU law (REUL) which remains in force after the end of 2023, such as the UK GDPR. The re-categorisation of REUL (and associated terms) to assimilated law reflects a change in its status and treatment under UK law, in that it is generally to be interpreted according to ordinary domestic law and principles. From 1 January 2024, REUL is ‘assimilated’ into domestic law by virtue of the fact it is generally stripped of EU-derived interpretive effects (eg supremacy of EU