Financial Regulatory Forum

By Stuart Gittleman, Compliance Complete

NEW YORK, May 2 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) – A U.S. law to improve tax compliance by U.S. taxpayers with foreign financial assets is creating confusion for foreign financial institutions that must cooperate with the Internal Revenue Service to help enforce the law.

The law, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA, requires U.S. taxpayers with certain foreign financial assets and offshore accounts to report the assets to the Internal Revenue Service.  (more…)

By Mark Davies, contributing author for Compliance Complete

LONDON, Apr. 18 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) – Continuing efforts by financial regulators and by firms themselves to monitor and offset risk have affected almost all areas of firms’ operations, including the management and maintenance of data. The overhaul of global systems following the financial crisis has led to an audit of data, and specifically of the information which firms hold about themselves and their counterparties or clients, known as business entity reference data.

More regulation

This “data exploration” is being driven by the cumulative effect of several individual pieces of regulation, including the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) and Solvency II in Europe and the Dodd-Frank Act and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) in the U.S., all of which are likely to have an impact globally. The primary goal of these proposals, with the exception of FATCA, is to improve risk management in the financial system.  (more…)

By Emmanuel Olaoye

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK, Nov. 6 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) - Financial institutions should take advantage of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service’s decision to postpone key start dates in the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and not wait for the U.S. Treasury to issue its final rules before they start their preparations, experts told Compliance Complete.

“If you put off your efforts or suspend them for too long I think you’ll fall way too far behind. I think you’ll have a very difficult time doing what you have to do. At this point you should have a very clear idea of what your current systems and procedures can and can’t do and how they are going to have to be modified,” said John Staples, managing partner of the law firm Burt, Staples & Maner, LLP. (more…)

By Rachel Wolcott

LONDON, May 3 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) - These days even the Swiss are fed up with their bankers. The financial crisis has riled Swiss citizens to the point that the Alpine country’s reputation for light-touch financial regulation will soon be a thing of the past. In a direct democracy such as Switzerland, where every citizen can vote on laws and even propose them, the people have spoken. What they have said is: we want more rules and regulation for bankers and asset managers.

“In the past people were against regulations which seemed too restrictive, but this is changing. The public mood is still critical vis-à-vis the banks and the culture of big bonuses for board of directors and management. Now we may see overregulation also because of the immediate political pressure facing a direct democracy,” Marc Raggenbass, head of the regulatory, compliance and legal practice at Deloitte in Zurich, told Thomson Reuters. (more…)

By Steven D Bortnick, contributing author for Thomson Reuters Accelus

NEW YORK, April 4 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) – The enactment of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) as in March of 2010 has sent shock waves through financial institutions and investment fund management companies. FATCA aims to obtain information to prevent U.S. persons from evading taxation through the use of foreign entities. Although the law does not fully enter in force until January 1, 2013, the effort to become compliant with FATCA should begin immediately. Some tips on how to do so are noted below.

The legislation is the direct result of the events that led to UBS’ admission that it helped U.S. taxpayers evade U.S. income tax on U.S.-source income. While the goal is the increased collection of tax, the intention is not to create any new tax. FATCA’s goal is accomplished by adding an entirely new chapter to the Internal Revenue Code devoted to due diligence, reporting and withholding. Failure to comply will result in withholding tax at the rate of 30 percent, including withholding on items understood not to be taxable in the hands of foreign persons.  (more…)

By Brett Wolf

ST. LOUIS/NEW YORK, March 7 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) – Despite an international push for financial institutions to crack down on corruption and money laundering linked to political figures, it remains unclear how firms in the United States and abroad will respond.

Some U.S. financial institutions say they have taken steps to address the specific corruption and money laundering risks associated with American political figures and those close to them. Others say they have not, and to date, regulators’ expectations are unclear.  (more…)

LONDON/NEW YORK, (Business Law Currents) – A fiscal tourniquet will put a squeeze on tax evasion – the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is threatening to clog the arteries of the world’s financial system with U.S. withholding taxes and burdensome obligations on non-U.S. firms.

Designed to staunch the bleeding of capital from the U.S. to secret bank accounts, FATCA is clamping down on overseas earnings but its unintended consequences are threatening to undermine investment in the U.S. (more…)

By Nick Paraskeva

NEW YORK, (Thomson Reuters Accelus) - The soon-to-be-implemented U.S. Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA, will have a bigger impact on foreign financial institutions than on U.S. ones, financial industry participants were told at a panel discussion on the law, which is placing new duties on compliance officers.

The event was hosted by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and conducted by the group’s Operations & Technology Society’s–Securities Operations Section, reflecting the role that staff in the operations units of firms were expected to have in meeting FATCA provisions.  (more…)