Regulation and Compliance News

As the focus shifts back to the offshore sector, leading e-learning provider Quick To Learn More has updated its Offshore module.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has responded to recent sophisticated attacks on bank accounts with a circular requiring authorised institutions to improve their IT security.

It was Gordon Brown's big idea: the UK Treasury would stand back and would leave all economic decisions to the Bank of England and all regulatory affairs to the Financial Services Authority. His actions were a sham, made obvious to all in the financial crisis. Now his the Treasury has issued its plans for another bite at financial sector reform that will formalise the reality: the Treasury is in charge.

The UK's FSA is setting out its store. The light-touch regime favoured by the US Fed and by extension the UK Treasury has had its day. New plans will hit companies where it hurts: in shareholders' pockets.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has today written to all Authorised Institutions with a blunt message: if you aid tax evasion, you are a money launderer; if you suspect money laundering, you must report it to the Joint Financial Intelligence Unit.

Governor Daniel K. Tarullo of the USA's Federal Reserve Bank says that the financial crisis was built into the financial system. And proposes changes.

The USA's SEC has announced a consultation relating to the protection of clients' funds in the hands of investment advisers. The SEC says that misuse of funds has been a feature of several recent cases.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has issued a notice to all Authorised Institutions in Hong Kong telling them to prepare for a potential epidemic of Human Swine Flu.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has issuing this warning to highlight loan modification/foreclosure rescue scams so that financial institutions may better assist law enforcement when filing Suspicious Activity Reports. The guidance is consistent with the Department of the Treasury's broader efforts to ensure that U.S. financial institutions are not used as conduits for illicit activity, including loan modification/foreclosure rescue scams.

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has taken a step to bring the USA's regulatory regime out of the near-dark ages that it has inhabited whilst the rest of the world has moved on. But it's a small step for regulators when what is needed is a giant step for the industry.