UK hits Russia with largest sanctions package yet on war anniversary
On the anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the UK has introduced its largest-ever sanctions package, targeting nearly 300 entities linked to Russia’s energy and military supply chains. The government has described the new measures as the most extensive since the war began, aimed at choking off Russia’s key revenue sources and degrading its […]
Swedbank faces new Swedish AML probe focused on customer due diligence
Sweden’s financial regulator, the Financial Supervisory Authority (commonly referred to as Finansinspektionen, FI), has opened a new investigation into Swedbank to assess whether the bank met Sweden’s anti-money laundering customer due diligence (CDD) and customer knowledge requirements. The review covers 1 December 2023 to 30 November 2025 and will examine the bank’s CDD measures under […]
OFSI is tightening sanctions enforcement: what’s changing and how to prepare
The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation published its consultation response on reforming its enforcement processes, confirming it intends to proceed with all the proposals from the original consultation (with adjustments based on feedback). For UK businesses, the direction of travel is clear: more structured enforcement decisions, more formal resolution routes, and a recalibration of incentives […]
New 2026 enforcement outlook signals tougher expectations for corporate compliance
Enforcement risk is expanding, not narrowing. That is the headline message from Hogan Lovells’ Global Bribery, Investigations and Enforcement Outlook 2026, which deliberately broadens the frame beyond bribery into the wider set of risks now travelling together: sanctions and trade controls, fraud, data privacy, ESG, supply chain due diligence, and technology-driven investigations. What used to […]
Asset recovery is UK’s real AML test in 2026
The UK has spent years talking tough on dirty money. A new analysis suggests the results are still falling short: just 28% of frozen criminal assets have been permanently recovered over the past seven years. That gap matters because freezing assets is often the easy part. The hard part is turning freezes, restraints and high-profile […]
Forced labour ban enforced as US detains car tyres under new import order
On 18 December 2025, U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a new Withhold Release Order (WRO) covering certain automobile tyres manufactured in Serbia by Linglong International Europe D.O.O. Zrenjanin. The effect is immediate and practical: shipments of the covered tyres arriving at US ports are detained, and they do not enter the United States market […]
Cannabis rescheduling under Trump: What it really changes for banks, SARs, and cannabis risk
In December 2025, the Donald Trump administration issued an executive order directing the federal government to expedite moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the US Controlled Substances Act. For banks and compliance teams, the headline question is practical: does this finally end the era of “routine cannabis SARs”, where institutions file suspicious […]
New Zealand’s Modern Slavery and Worker Exploitation Bill could bring mandatory reporting for large organisations
New Zealand is moving again on modern slavery reform, this time with a bill designed to put clear, business-facing expectations into law. In late January 2026, New Zealand National Party and New Zealand Labour Party MPs lodged a co-sponsored Modern Slavery and Worker Exploitation Bill, using a parliamentary mechanism that allows a Member’s Bill to […]
£160,000 OFSI penalty: how a spelling variant slipped through Bank of Scotland’s Russia sanctions controls
OFSI has issued a £160,000 monetary penalty to Bank of Scotland Plc (part of Lloyds Banking Group) after the bank processed payments linked to an account held by a UK-designated person under the Russia sanctions regime. On paper it is a straightforward enforcement action. In practice, it exposes familiar pressure points in sanctions controls. What […]