The rules on the use of information and communication technology ("ICT") in the financial sector were traditionally country and institution-specific to a great extent and predominately focused on the financial impact of ICT risks. Several recent EU legislative acts and guidelines of the European Banking Authority ("EBA"), the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority ("EIOPA")and the European Securities and Markets Authority ("ESMA"), such as the 2021 Guidelines on ICT and security risk management and the cloud outsourcing guidelines, have...

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What Is Greenwashing? Broadly speaking, “greenwashing” is an umbrella term that describes companies marketing their products or practices as being sustainable or environmentally friendly in ways that may be unsupported by data or perceived as misleading or even false. The term greenwashing was originally coined by environmentalist Jay Westerveld in 1986, when he criticized the hotel industry’s “save the towel” movement as misleading. Westerveld argued that the industry’s true goal was not to reduce waste and help protect the environment,...

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In a move that will strengthen EU-UK defence cooperation, the European Council this week adopted its decision to allow the participation of the UK in PESCO project, Military Mobility. A key NATO ally, the UK is now the fourth non-EU Member State to join the initiative after Canada, Norway and the US. Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has demonstrated how fundamentally important it is that the EU and its partners are able to move troops and military equipment swiftly...

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Initially published in the South China Morning Post | The unfolding trade, tech and cold wars between the US, China and their allies risk eroding the international rules-based architecture Without a system for connection and exchange, economies will shrink, cooperation will wither and global crises will mount When world powers and their economies clash, driven by national ideological differences and geopolitical goals, cooperation and coordination withers and trade – reliant on common norms, openness and engagement – shrinks. Economies shrink too, as...

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Part one of a two-part series Since the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was enacted in January 2021, there have been many questions about what kinds of companies will have to report under the law and how beneficial ownership will be defined. On September 30, 2022, after months of development, the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued the final rule for beneficial ownership reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act. The final rule, which will ease compliance burdens on companies,...

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