Following the Rules

Lucy McNulty

An insider’s guide to the laws dictating life within UK and EU financial services, the people influencing their development and policing finance workers’ compliance

  1. 17 HR AGO

    Special episode: How to navigate a dawn raid with the SFO's Emma Isaac and Simmons & Simmons' Camilla de Silva

    Today’s episode is part of a special series of Following the Rules produced in association with Simmons & Simmons, an international law firm supporting financial institutions across the global regulatory landscape. The series offers practical insights to help financial services firms navigate legal, regulatory, technological, and cultural change. In this episode, we’re diving into one of the most intense moments a business can face - a dawn raid. When Nick Ephgrave took over as Director of the UK Serious Fraud Office in 2023, he’s pledged “swifter action and more dawn raids” - a clear signal that the agency is refocusing on proactive, visible enforcement. But what does a dawn raid actually look like in practice? How should firms respond when investigators appear unannounced at the door? And how can businesses prepare, both legally and culturally, for such a high-pressure event? To answer these questions, we’re joined by two experts on the topic: Camilla de Silva, who spent over five years at the SFO, rising to Joint Head of the SFO’s Fraud, Bribery and Corruption division, before joining Simmons & Simmons in 2020 as a Partner in its Disputes and Investigations group. Since 2023, she has lead Simmons & Simmons’ Corporate Crime and Global Investigations group; and, Emma Isaac, who worked as criminal legal adviser before moving to the SFO in 2013. In February, she became a member of the agency’s senior leadership team when she was appointed Joint Head of the SFO’s Fraud, Bribery and Corruption division. Together, they discuss how enforcement dynamics are shifting, what mistakes companies tend to make under pressure, and what practical steps legal and compliance teams can take today to be ready if the SFO comes knocking. ---- Short on time? You can read the episode highlights on The Banker's Risk & Regulation hub...

    55 min
  2. 20 OCT

    Special episode: How to cut red tape for financial leaders while raising conduct standards with Penny Miller and Andrea Finn of Simmons & Simmons

    Today’s episode is part of a special series of Following the Rules produced in association with Simmons & Simmons, an international law firm supporting financial institutions across the global regulatory landscape. The series offers practical insights to help financial services firms navigate legal, regulatory, technological, and cultural change. In this episode, we explore two closely-linked developments set to reshape the compliance agenda: reforms to the UK’s senior managers regime, and the FCA’s new rules on toxic workplace behaviour, which will bring bullying, harassment, and discrimination within the scope of regulatory misconduct from 2026. So, what do these changes mean for senior managers and their teams? How can firms strike the right balance between cutting red tape and maintaining strong accountability? And how should legal, compliance and HR functions prepare for regulator’s growing focus on culture and non-financial misconduct? Joining me to discuss these questions are: Penny Miller, who leads Simmons & Simmons' UK business and is a partner in its Financial Services Regulatory Group, advising global banks and asset managers on complex UK and cross-border regulatory issues and, Andrea Finn, a partner who heads the UK Employment and Pensions Group at Simmons & Simmons, specialising in employment and conduct matters, with extensive experience helping firms navigate the overlap between regulatory and employment law. --- Short on time? You can read the episode highlights on The Banker's Risk & Regulation hub...

    32 min
  3. 22 SEPT

    Special episode: How to future proof your business with Charlotte Stalin and Sarah James of Simmons & Simmons

    Today’s episode is a special one produced in association with Simmons & Simmons, an international law firm supporting financial institutions across the global regulatory landscape. It also forms part of a new Following the Rules series providing practical, actionable guidance to help listeners and the financial services firms they work for navigate legal, regulatory, technological, and cultural change. In this episode, we turn to the future of work – an area moving rapidly up the agenda. A 2024 survey by the Bank of England and the FCA found that 75% of UK-regulated firms are already deploying or trialling AI and machine learning, particularly in areas like anti-money laundering, and fraud detection. By 2025, firms are beginning to explore more sophisticated and complex use cases. So how will AI reshape the role of legal and compliance teams in financial services? What steps can organisations take to future-proof these functions as innovation accelerates? And what are the risks of failing to adapt? Joining us to share their insights are: Charlotte Stalin, the head of Simmons & Simmons’ financial institutions sector, who advises leading global investment firms and banks on financial services regulation, having joined the firm in 2006. Sarah James, a Partner at Simmons & Simmons, who since 2016 has also led the firm’s flexible legal resource business, Adaptive, as its Global Head. Short on time? You can read the episode highlights on the FT's Banking, Risk and Regulation...

    38 min
  4. 4 AUG

    Special episode: How to track non-financial misconduct within your business with Smarsh's Shaun Hurst and former Standard Chartered surveillance chief Emily Wright

    Today’s episode is a special one produced in association with Smarsh, a technology firm providing global financial institutions with the tools to capture, store, and monitor their communications. It also marks the launch of a new Following the Rules series providing practical, actionable guidance to help listeners and the financial services firms they work for navigate legal, regulatory, technological, and cultural change. We’re kicking off with a deep dive into non-financial misconduct - a growing area of regulatory focus. The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority now considers toxic workplace behaviour, such as bullying, harassment, and discrimination, to be conduct that could impact a person’s fitness for regulated roles and signal broader cultural failings. From 2026, the FCA will begin supervising serious cases more closely. So how can firms of all sizes effectively detect, respond to, and minimise non-financial misconduct within their businesses? How do you define what counts as serious bullying or discrimination? And how can organisations ensure change is meaningful, not just a box-ticking exercise? Today’s guests are experts in the subject. Shaun Hurst is Smarsh’s Principal Regulatory Advisor, with a background in managing technology for Citigroup’s security and investigations teams in Asia-Pacific and Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Emily Wright is a compliance and conduct consultant with over 20 years' experience, including overseeing compliance and surveillance programmes at financial services giants Standard Chartered, JP Morgan, and ICAP.

    30 min
4.9
out of 5
26 Ratings

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An insider’s guide to the laws dictating life within UK and EU financial services, the people influencing their development and policing finance workers’ compliance

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