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Head of Derivatives & Structured Products Jonathan Gilmour, Partner Joseph Wren, Senior Associate Nicholas Baines and Associate Nick Morgan have authored a chapter on derivatives at fund level in the latest edition of Global Legal Insights' annual fund finance publication. This chapter highlights some key structuring and legal issues that should be considered by a private capital manager thinking about entering into derivatives transactions at fund level as part of its risk management or investment strategy.

This article was first published in GLI - Blockchain & Cryptocurrency Regulation 2025.

This update provides a brief summary of some notable recent developments from a UK sanctions perspective, including the introduction of the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation ("OTSI"), which will be tasked with trade sanctions implementation and enforcement in the UK, along with further guidance on a potentially wide interpretation of the "ownership and control" test, and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation's ("OFSI") 2022-2023 Annual Review.

As part of the Edinburgh Reforms announced last December, the government launched a consultation on reforming the fund management exemption. Currently, funds are within the exemption if they are either on a UK domestic statutory list of exempt funds or can rely on "direct effect" of EU law (by falling within the EU law concept of "special investment fund").  In the consultation, the government proposed introducing a characteristics based test based on (its view) of the EU law position, with the domestic statutory list being retained but not updated.

This article was first published in GLI - Blockchain & Cryptocurrency Regulation 2024.

The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act (REUL Act) has recently received Royal Assent. Here we consider the impact of the REUL Act on employment law, including a range of employment rights derived from EU law, and the impact on equality law.

We are pleased to present the first edition of "Pensions De-risking", our periodical update on developments in the pensions de-risking marketplace. This first edition includes topical content on illiquid investments in the context of de-risking activity and links to other Travers Smith content on the increasingly recurring theme of pension scheme surpluses.

At the start of the 2023/24 financial year, we focus on 5 focal points of interest to the real estate sector: regulatory change, updates to real estate taxation, some proposed changes to the planning regime, ongoing reform to construction law and some caselaw reports from real estate disputes.

In November 2022, HM Treasury (HMT) published its response to the Solvency II consultation, setting out its final package for reforming the prudential regulation of the UK insurance sector. 

The Pensions Regulator (the Regulator) has recently published a review of the industry's first wave of pension scheme climate change disclosure reports, revealing some interesting examples of good practice as well as potential areas for improvement in the industry.

Funds Partner Sam Kay and Tax Partner Elena Rowlands have featured in the latest edition of Private Equity International discussing the increasing disclosure and transparency requirements fund managers are having to comply with.

On 6 April 2022, the European Commission published the long-awaited final version of the detailed rules – the Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) – under the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). 

All employers must conduct right to work checks to ensure their employees have the right to work lawfully in the UK. Employers who fail to do so face potential fines and, in some cases, criminal liability. Checks must be conducted on recruitment for all employees before the individual starts work. Follow-up checks must also be conducted for employees on visas shortly before the visa is due to end.

Funds partners Sam Kay and Will Normand have featured in the latest edition of Private Equity International discussing the effect of regulatory change on the fundraising market. You can read the full keynote interview below.

The Solvency II capital regime (and, since Brexit, its onshored equivalent) affects trustee de-risking agendas both in the short, and longer, term.

Travers Smith Competition Partner Stephen Whitfield has written an article for Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence on upcoming regulatory challenges facing M&A transactions, in particular in the financial services sector.

Tax analysis: HMRC has launched a consultation on the draft legislation for the Residential Property Developer Tax (RPDT) ahead of its inclusion in the 2021–22 Finance Bill. This follows the government holding a consultation seeking views on the policy design of the new RPDT between 29 April and 22 July 2021. Ian Zeider, knowledge counsel at Travers Smith and Cathryn Vanderspar discuss the draft legislation and possible issues.

Tax Partner Simon Skinner and Senior Associate Hugh Brooks have written an article for the latest British Tax Review on recent changes of law relating to HM Revenue and Customs powers in relation to disclosures of tax avoidance schemes, and promoters and enablers of such schemes (British Tax Review Issue 4, 2021). A PDF of this contribution is linked below. Alternatively you can download to print, to save for later or for a different experience.

Writing for Practical Law, Finance Partner Peter Hughes, Pensions Partner David James and Pensions Consultant Charlotte Feld consider negotiations between employers and DB pension scheme trustees against a backdrop of COVID-19.

The Pensions Regulator has published several pieces of guidance for trustees, employers and administrators on coronavirus related issues. Our updated summaries of the guidance are published here.