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Briefing Notes
Capital Markets
JPMorgan posts highest quarterly profit in US banking history as investment banking and equity trading revenues surge on AI-driven deal boom
Record bank profits driven by AI-deal underwriting directly inflate the deal pipeline that City capital markets teams depend on.
Energy & Tech
European Commission plans to recommend delaying penalties under the EU Methane Regulation for fossil fuel importers as US and Qatar pressure mounts
Non-binding Commission recommendations on the EUMR create genuine legal uncertainty for importers who cannot rely on them as a formal compliance shield.
Regulation
UK BNPL regulations come into force bringing buy-now-pay-later credit under FCA oversight for the first time
BNPL's FCA authorisation requirement is a once-in-a-generation compliance buildout for a sector that has operated outside regulated credit rules.
Banking & Finance
UK Supreme Court rules that a covert director breached their good-faith duty to their company in a significant corporate governance decision
Covert directors now face the same fiduciary exposure as formally appointed ones, closing a governance liability gap lenders have long monitored.
AI & Law
AI tools are driving a surge in pro se litigation in US courts but judges are sanctioning self-represented litigants for AI-generated errors and hallucinations
AI raises the volume of court filings but not the quality, and courts are sanctioning litigants who treat AI output as a finished legal product.
M&A
Grant Thornton UK acquires strategy consultancy Fairgrove Partners in first domestic deal since Cinven PE investment
PE capital in professional services drives capability acquisitions, not just headcount, reshaping who wins advisory mandates.
Disputes
Portofino Technologies accuses Citadel Securities of using withdrawal of its trade secrets lawsuit to orchestrate a damaging press campaign
Withdrawal of a claim followed by a press campaign creates reputational harm that litigation itself cannot easily unwind.
International
TLT passes £200m in revenue and targets £300m by 2030 as the UK mid-market law firm pursues international and sector-led growth
UK regional firms crossing the £200m revenue mark signal that sector specialism, not geography, now determines who wins mid-market mandates.