Who has been hit hardest by £21bn of pandemic fraud, and will the taxpayer EVER get it back? March 30, 2023 The UK Government has lost £21bn worth of taxpayers money due to fraud since the start of the pandemic, that is “very unlikely” to be unrecovered, according to the National Audit Office (NAO). The NAO said that many public bodies are unaware of the amount of fraud they face, as it revealed that levels of [...]
HSBC, SocGen and BNP Paribas raided in France as part of ‘cum cum’ tax probe March 28, 2023 French authorities today raided the Paris offices of five major banks – including HSBC, BNP Paribas, and Société Générale – in relation to an ongoing fraud and money laundering investigation. In a statement, France’s national fraud prosecutor said the raids relate to a preliminary investigation into so-called ‘cum cum’ schemes, which was opened in December [...]
Top City firms pledge to hike contributions to employees’ pensions pots amid concerns over looming savings crunch March 21, 2023 A coalition of top City firms today vowed to boost the contributions they make into their employees’ pensions in response to growing concerns about the potential for a looming savings crunch. Aviva, Phoenix and Herbert Smith Freehills all pledged to give pensions contributions equivalent to at least seven per cent of their workers’ salaries in [...]
Why AI tools, like GPT, are now at the frontline of the City’s talent war? March 19, 2023 Major advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) technology are rapidly transforming the ways that law firms and accounting firms work. The world’s top professional services firms are now increasingly starting to use increasingly sophisticated AI tech in their everyday work. However, increased use of AI technology is not just the inevitable result of technological innovation, but [...]
Russia takes its war with Ukraine to London’s High Court as battle begins over a soured $3bn bond deal March 16, 2023 The UK’s top court yesterday ruled the Ukrainian government should be given the opportunity to face the Kremlin in London’s High Court, in a more than $3bn dispute over a 2013 bond deal. The Supreme Court’s ruling is set to see the UK’s High Court become the new front for the continuing fight between Russia [...]
World’s top insurers to face aircraft leasers in High Court ‘mega trial’ over planes seized by Russia March 15, 2023 Insurance giants Lloyd’s, AIG and Fidelis are set to face a ‘mega trial’ in London’s High Court over their refusal to pay out billions in insurance claims to aircraft leasers that had their planes seized by President Vladimir Putin. A High Court judge has ruled claims brought forward by an array of the world’s biggest [...]
PwC strikes deal with San Francisco startup to let lawyers and tax experts use AI chatbot March 15, 2023 PwC has struck a deal to start using an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot to speed up work in its tax and legal divisions as the world’s top professional services firms increasingly look towards tech to boost efficiency. The accounting firm’s initial 12-month contract with San Francisco startup Harvey will see all 4,000 staff in PwC’s [...]
ENRC: UK’s Serious Fraud Office must share blame for its former lawyer’s leaks, Dechert tells High Court March 15, 2023 US law firm Dechert has accused the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) of knowingly cultivating an “improper relationship” with its former partner, corrupt City lawyer Neil Gerrard, in an ongoing legal battle concerning Kazakh mining firm ENRC. The law firm’s charge comes as it responds to a High Court claim by ENRC, which is seeking [...]
Silicon Valley Bank collapse poses ‘tremendous opportunity’, lawsuit funder LCM says March 14, 2023 The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank poses a “tremendous opportunity” for more lawsuits, funder Litigation Capital Management (LCM) has said. The firm is readying itself to profit on an uptick in bankruptcies as the global economy hits a slump, the company’s chief executive has said. The Australian financier, that in February made £7m in profits [...]
Calls to overhaul ‘antiquated’ trial rules grow as SFO forced to drop G4S case March 14, 2023 The UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) on Friday said it would be dropping its case against three former G4S executives over claims they defrauded the UK government of tens of millions of pounds. The collapse of the SFO’s case came after G4S itself took responsibility for the fraud that saw it mislead Britain’s Ministry of Justice [...]