Freshfields FS Insights
Welcome to the October 2026 edition of the Freshfields FS Insights newsletter, which contains a selection of thought leadership related to the financial services industry published over the past two months by Freshfields lawyers from around the world, as well as upcoming dates for your diary. If you would like more information regarding any of these developments, please get in touch with your usual Freshfields contact.
This month’s edition includes the following topics:
Cryptoassets
Treasury proposes GENIUS Act gatekeeping rules with a path for foreign issuers
On 17 August 2026, the US Department of the Treasury issued a highly anticipated notice of proposed rulemaking to implement provisions of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act (the GENIUS Act) governing the issuance, offering, and sale of payment stablecoins in the United States. If adopted, the proposal would establish rules of the road for foreign issuers and digital asset service providers (DASPs) seeking to access the US market. In this blog post, we discuss these and other features of the proposal, after first setting out some of its key definitions.
Patrolling the perimeter: Final FCA perimeter guidance and amendments to the UK Cryptoasset Regulations
On 15 September 2026, HM Treasury laid before Parliament the draft Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2026, which will make targeted amendments to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) Regulations 2026, introducing a number of exclusions from certain cryptoasset activities, principally related to “UK qualifying stablecoin” payments. The following day, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a policy statement (PS26/18) finalising the cryptoasset perimeter guidance which it consulted on in April. The two publications do not yet align, as PS26/18 reflects the Cryptoasset Regulations as made in February 2026 and does not account for the impact of the draft Regulations. In our blog post, we summarize the key exclusions that would be introduced by the draft Regulations as well as the material additions and clarifications to the FCA’s final guidance that were not reflected in its April consultation.
MiCA under the microscope: What the EBA and the ECB told Brussels about the review of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation
The European Banking Authority (EBA) and the European Central Bank (ECB) published their detailed responses on the European Commission’s targeted consultation on the review of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). This blog post follows the consultation’s structure, highlighting the most important points from each authority before drawing a conclusion on overall direction.
Financial crime
Hawala: How it impacts the financial services sector and what it means under the AMLR
In September 2026, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) published Investigating Professional Money Laundering, Underground Banking, and the Use of Hawala and Other Similar Service Providers – a report aimed at closing long-standing knowledge gaps around informal value-transfer systems. Its findings confirm that Hawala is not a marginal, exotic practice confined to informal cash economies: nearly 90% of surveyed jurisdictions report its presence within their territory, and more than 80% identify Hawala-type networks as among the principal channels for professional money laundering. This blog post explains (i) how Hawala has traditionally worked and how it operates today, (ii) the money-laundering and terrorist-financing risks it poses, (iii) how it interacts with the regulated financial sector and what that means in practice for compliance functions, and (iv) what this means under the incoming EU AML Regulation (AMLR).
US banking regulation
Key takeaways from the OCC and FDIC CSI proposals
Two of the three US federal banking agencies – the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) – have proposed revisions to their regulations governing confidential supervisory information (CSI) for the first time in decades. The FDIC’s 25 June 2026 proposal and the OCC’s 3 August 2026 proposal respond to years of industry criticism that the existing CSI sharing restrictions are impractical and overbroad, and both proposals would generally relax certain of the longstanding requirements that a supervised financial institution obtain agency approval before sharing CSI. In this blog post, we summarize five key takeaways from these proposals and look ahead to what’s next.
Banking agencies propose an overhaul of third-party risk management guidance
On 11 September 2026, the OCC, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB), the FDIC and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) jointly requested comment on proposed interagency third-party risk management (TPRM) guidance. The agencies describe the proposal as a principles-based framework that would rescind and replace the existing TPRM guidance, which has been in effect since 2023. That same day, the OCC, FRB and FDIC also issued a joint statement on community banks’ engagement with core service providers, and the FRB proposed a companion TPRM guide for the traditional community banking organizations that it supervises. In this blog post, we discuss key features of the proposal and highlight certain differences between it and the existing guidance.
Enforcement and supervision
FINRA's enforcement review: What it means for broker-dealers, public companies and institutional investors
FINRA's recent review of its Enforcement Program may prove to be one of the most consequential developments in securities enforcement practice in years. While much of the initial attention has focused on discrete recommendations, including a five-year limitations period, reforms to Rule 8210 requests, enhanced cooperation credit, and more transparency around sanctions, the broader significance lies in what the report says about the future direction of FINRA enforcement. The report also has implications well beyond FINRA-regulated firms. Because FINRA frequently serves as the front end of the securities enforcement pipeline, particularly in alleged insider-trading, market-abuse, suspicious-trading and other trading-related investigations, the reforms could influence how matters are developed before they ever reach the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Earlier engagement, greater transparency and more structured investigative processes may create new opportunities for firms, public companies and institutional investors to shape the factual record and demonstrate remediation at a stage that increasingly could affect whether, and how, the SEC proceeds. For more information, see our blog post.
EXAMS to IAs and BDs: “Talk to us before we write about you"
The SEC's Division of Examinations (EXAMS) is the primary point of contact between the SEC and most investment advisers (IAs) and broker-dealers (BDs). In a recent speech, Director Keith Cassidy offered a clear view of how EXAMS sees its role: less as a "gotcha" regulator and more as a transparent, predictable and engagement-oriented supervisory function. The speech also suggests a continued effort to align EXAMS more closely with the SEC's operating and policy divisions, particularly Investment Management and Trading & Markets, rather than emphasizing its role as a pipeline to Enforcement. For key takeaways and what this means for IAs and BDs, see our blog post.
Prediction markets
The prediction markets crackdown continues
Earlier this year, we examined how US federal authorities might apply existing insider trading and anti-fraud principles to prediction markets, an emerging asset class that does not fit neatly within traditional regulatory regimes, but whose features arguably implicate several of them. In a blog post published on 9 April 2026, we explored an enforcement landscape beginning to take shape as regulators, prosecutors and market participants grappled with the rapid expansion of event-based trading markets. Days later, the Department of Justice and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission brought parallel charges against a US soldier who allegedly used classified information concerning a military operation to trade prediction-market contracts. Recent developments suggest that case was not an outlier. As we explain in a more recent blog post, what began as an emerging regulatory theory is increasingly becoming an active enforcement priority, with authorities reportedly examining additional instances of alleged trading on non-public information.
Ninth Circuit creates prediction markets split
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that the Commodity Exchange Act does not pre-empt state gaming regulation of sports event contracts on prediction markets. As explained in this blog post, the decision conflicts with a Third Circuit ruling from earlier this year, deepens an increasingly fragmented regulatory landscape for prediction markets and makes Supreme Court review all but inevitable.
Prediction markets and event contracts in Germany: At the crossroads between gambling law and financial regulation
The recent rise of prediction markets calls for a renewed examination of the delineation between gambling law and financial regulation. Regulatory requirements vary depending on the jurisdiction. Internationally, prediction market operators are often considered to operate in – at least – a grey area of the law. In light of a recent critical publication by the Joint Gambling Authority of the German Federal States (Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder or GGL), the German regulator for gambling, and its dedicated FAQ website on societal bets, this blog post outlines the key regulatory challenges for prediction market operators and participants in general and Germany specifically.
Remuneration
Solo-regulated firms: FCA consults on Remuneration Code reform
On 14 July 2026, the FCA published a consultation paper (CP26/27) on simplifying the remuneration code structure applicable to solo-regulated firms, including investment firms, alternative investment fund managers and UCITS managers. The FCA intends to simplify the regulatory framework applicable to remuneration at solo-regulated firms, replacing the existing three codes with a single composite code, which will be applicable to all in-scope solo regulated firms. However, this is not just an exercise in consolidation. The proposed code will also be more flexible and less prescriptive than the current arrangements. This blog post discusses the reasons for the intended change of approach and summarizes the principal adjustments that are expected to be made.
Modernizing corporate reporting: Proposed changes to remuneration reporting requirements
On 7 September 2026, the UK government announced a consultation on reforms to the UK’s corporate reporting framework. The government’s stated aim is to support economic growth – and the UK’s international competitiveness – by ensuring that the UK’s corporate reporting framework “is the most proportionate and effective in the world.” The proposals under consultation are wide-ranging and cover all aspects of corporate reporting. This blog post focuses on the proposals that relate specifically to remuneration.
Outsourcing
From outsourcing to third-party risk: The EBA’s new guidelines and what they mean in practice
On 18 September 2026, the EBA published its final report on the guidelines on third-party risk management. The guidelines replace the EBA's 2019 guidelines on outsourcing arrangements, which are repealed with effect from the (still to be confirmed) date of application. The rationale is explicit in the final report: the 2019 outsourcing guidelines were drafted for a narrower population of addressees and pre-date a wave of legislative change, including most significantly the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA). Conceptually, the guidelines move from a narrow “outsourcing” lens to the broader concept of “third-party arrangements,” of which outsourcing is now expressly only a subset. As explained in this blog post, the stated aim is to enable institutions to manage third-party risk holistically – covering both ICT and non-ICT service relationships – rather than through two disconnected regimes.
Insurance
The FCA’s pure protection market study: closing the protection gap
Following a market study launched in March 2025, the FCA has concluded that competition in the distribution of pure protection products generally works well for existing policyholders. The exception is income protection, where claims ratios were markedly lower. The FCA also found a significant protection gap. The FCA's answer is not a new rulebook, but a package of FCA-led, industry-led and stakeholder initiatives working through existing frameworks. The FCA says it does not currently see a need for further regulatory intervention, though it will keep outcomes under review and could act if the position does not improve. As noted in our blog post, however, that restraint should not be mistaken for indifference. The report reads less like a closing statement and more like a roadmap: a clear signal of where the FCA's supervisory attention on Consumer Duty, product governance, fair value and distribution arrangements will fall next.
Private funds
Well-Caffeinated: Not just a speed bump – identifying and managing conflicts of interest in private funds
In this episode of Well-Caffeinated, host Tim Clark is joined by David Nicolardi, a Private Funds and Secondaries partner in Freshfields' Washington, DC office, to examine one of the first principles of fund management: identifying and managing conflicts of interest. The conversation explores how regulators think about conflicts and investment adviser fiduciary duties, drawing on David's experience in the SEC's Division of Investment Management. Tim and David unpack why treating conflicts as mere “speed bumps” to rush past is a dangerous mindset, and why thoughtful identification and management are fundamental to an adviser's fiduciary duty. Tim and David also cover the two pillars of managing conflicts – disclosure and mitigation – and the standard of “full and fair” disclosure, informed consent and when formal approval from investors or an LP advisory committee is required.
Data
Data on demand: Germany's Intelligence Services Reform Act and the new obligations for carmakers, platforms and banks
Against a backdrop of intensifying hybrid threats – cyber-attacks, sabotage, disinformation and other covert pressure short of armed conflict – Germany is overhauling its intelligence services law. On 12 August 2026 the federal cabinet passed a reform package (Nachrichtendienstreformgesetz or NDRefG), centered on amendments to the Federal Constitutional Protection Act and the Federal Intelligence Service Act. At more than 730 pages, it would for the first time allow the domestic and foreign services to intervene operationally at home rather than merely observe. As explained in this blog post, the reform imposes, more quietly, new regulatory compliance requirements for the private sector, including disclosure, confidentiality and precautionary duties for car manufacturers, digital service providers and payment institutions.
Dates for your diary
UK Autumn Budget 2026: 28 October 2026
The new UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, John Healey, will deliver the Autumn Budget 2026 on 28 October 2026. The Freshfields London tax team will discuss key business tax measures in a special edition Budget podcast which will be available on 29 October 2026. Please contact Paula Tallant to be added to the mailing list.
12th Conference on the Banking Union: 3 November 2026
In cooperation with the Institute for Law and Finance at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main and the Center for Financial Studies, Freshfields will be hosting the 12th Conference on the Banking Union in Frankfurt am Main. The topic of this year's conference is "The Simplification of Banking Regulation and Supervision." The conference will take place on Tuesday, 3 November 2026, between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm CEST (followed by lunch) in a hybrid format – both at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main and online. The event will bring together viewpoints from supervisors, lawmakers, the financial industry, and academia to explore opportunities and proposals for simplifying the current regulatory and supervisory framework. Key aspects to be discussed will include the current simplification efforts both on legislative and supervisory level, in particular in light of the recently published Report on the Competitiveness of the Banking Sector and the Single Market in Banking of the European Commission. We will also consider the implications of these efforts for the current state and the future of the Banking Union. To register, please click here.
UK Cryptoasset Conference: 11 November 2026
Freshfields will be hosting our second annual UK Cryptoasset Conference on Wednesday, 11 November 2026, in London. This year’s in-person event will focus on payments in a multi-money world, touching on topics including stablecoin, tokenization and agentic commerce. It will be a morning event with several panels followed by a networking lunch. For more information, contact Ketan Raniga.