Financial Assistance Scheme meaning

A limited company can repurchase its own shares where the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) are met. This is termed a share buyback, or a purchase of own shares. Beyond the CA 2006, additional rules and guidance are relevant to a listed company or an AIM company. A private limited company may only carry out an off‑market buyback; accordingly, this checklist does not cover on‑market buybacks. For an overview of share buybacks, including how off‑market and on‑market buybacks differ, see Practice Note: Share buybacks—the legal framework. Preliminary issues Before proceeding with a buyback, a private limited company should work through several preliminary points and may need to complete certain preparatory steps. For more detail, see Practice Notes: Private company share buybacks—initial considerations and Tax issues on share buybacks for corporate lawyers. Articles of association and shareholders' agreements: Check that the company’s articles provide the necessary power to undertake the proposed buyback...

This timeline outlines major milestones in the UK’s consumer credit framework. For earlier milestones, see: Consumer credit—timeline (2011–2023) [Archived]. 2026 24 March 2026 — FCA — Timing of the FCA’s motor finance announcement The Financial Conduct Authority confirmed it will outline its approach to motor finance redress shortly after markets close on Monday 30 March 2026, following an October 2025 consultation on a compensation scheme. 17 March 2026 — FCA — Regulatory priorities: Consumer finance report The FCA has issued its 2026 Regulatory priorities: Consumer finance report, emphasising access to credit, assistance for consumers facing financial difficulty, and effective complaints handling. For further details see: FCA outlines 2026 regulatory priorities for consumer finance. 4 March 2026 — FCA — Motor finance compensation scheme to include implementation period The FCA has released a webpage on its proposed compensation scheme for motor...

A limited company is permitted to repurchase its own shares where the criteria in the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) are satisfied. Such transactions are known as share buybacks, or purchases by a company of its own shares. Alongside the CA 2006 provisions, additional rules and guidance can apply to a listed company or to an AIM company. A private limited company may effect a buyback out of capital in accordance with CA 2006, Pt 18, Ch 5 (CA 2006, ss 709–723), subject always to any restriction or prohibition contained in the company’s articles of association. For private companies, repurchases are undertaken solely off-market, and accordingly this checklist does not cover on-market buybacks. For an introduction to share buybacks, including an outline of the differences between an off-market share buyback and an on-market share buyback, see Practice Note: Share buybacks—the legal framework. Preliminary issues Before proceeding with any share buyback to be financed out of capital in accordance with CA 2006, Pt 18, Ch 5, a private limited...

In this issue: Targeted support regime Trustees, governance and administration Personal pension schemes Funding and investment Pensions dashboards Public sector pension schemes Dates for your diary Trackers Targeted support regime HM Treasury and FCA finalise framework for new targeted support regime On 11 December 2025, HM Treasury (HMT) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confirmed the design of the forthcoming targeted support regime—hailed as the most substantial shift to the advice/guidance divide in over ten years. After parallel consultations in summer 2025, the government and the FCA have published their decisions and implementation timetables. The framework is intended to tackle the longstanding ‘advice gap’ by permitting authorised firms to deliver personalised, recommendation-led assistance to cohorts of consumers with comparable profiles and situations, without amounting to ‘advising on investments’ under Article 53 RAO of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) Order 2001, SI 2001/544 (RAO). The regime is expected to commence in April...

In this issue: UK, EU and international regulators and bodies Authorisations, approvals and oversight Prudential obligations Financial crime and sanctions Consumer protection Complaints, redress and claims management Investigations, enforcement and disciplinary matters Sustainable finance and ESG Banks and mutuals Investment funds and asset management Investment funds and asset management Insurance regulation FSMA-regulated pensions activity Regulation of AI in FS LexTalk®Financial Services: a Lexis®Nexis community Financial Services Enforcement Database Daily and weekly news alerts Intraday news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Latest Q&A UK, EU and international regulators and bodies Commission tables €193.26bn EU budget for 2026 to drive key priorities The European Commission has tabled its draft 2026 EU budget, fixing overall appropriations at €193.26bn, alongside an estimated €105.32bn in disbursements through NextGenerationEU. Set against ongoing geopolitical instability, the plan is designed to underpin core strategic aims, including...

In this issue: Brexit highlights Brexit SIs Post-Brexit transition guidance Constitutional and administrative law Equality and human rights Judicial review Information law Public procurement Subsidy control and State aid Other Public Law news Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Brexit highlights Cabinet Office publishes evaluation of Common Frameworks The Cabinet Office has released a review of the Common Frameworks, assessing how the UK Government and the devolved administrations collaborate after Brexit. Drawing on proforma data across 28 frameworks and six case studies, the review concluded that, although the frameworks support effective intergovernmental collaboration, there is scope to enhance cross-framework alignment, stakeholder participation and central guidance. It also observed that many processes within the frameworks remain untried, with limited examples of formal dispute resolution or managing divergence, and recommends continued evaluation as the frameworks mature. See: LNB News 18/07/2025...

Meaning of ‘non-executive director’ The broad definition of ‘director’ is not closed. Under the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006), a director is any person who occupies the office of director, whatever title they hold. Accordingly, this covers both executive and non-executive directors (NEDs). Executive directors are typically authorised, either by the company’s constitution or by authority delegated from the board, to manage the company’s day-to-day affairs, and they usually have a full-time service contract. NEDs generally: have no executive powers play a pivotal role in the company’s corporate governance are not employees of the company There are a number of challenges around granting shares to NEDs. This Practice Note considers the issues to assess when offering shares or share-based remuneration to NEDs, including: the potential impact on the NED’s independence the share dealing provisions of Assimilated Regulation (EU) 596/2014 for the UK, and the Market Abuse Regulation (Regulation (EU) 596/2014) previously and for the EU ...

FORTHCOMING CHANGE 1 : Section 10 of the Finance Act 2022 will raise the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) from 55 to 57 on 6 April 2028, except for members of the firefighters, police and armed forces public service pension schemes. This increase applies broadly across registered schemes, subject to the stated exemptions. The same Act will also permit members of registered pension schemes to access benefits before 57 where, on or before 4 November 2021, they either held an ‘unqualified right’ to draw benefits, or were already engaged in a substantive transfer to a scheme providing an unqualified right to a protected pension age below 57 on or before 4 November 2021. To rely on this new protection applying in 2028, the scheme’s rules must, as at 11 February 2021, have contained an unqualified right to take entitlement to scheme benefits before age 57. For more detail, see Practice Note: Increasing the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) to 57—pensions impact. FORTHCOMING CHANGE 2 : The Pension...

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and is no longer maintained Coronavirus (COVID-19) Lawyers across the globe have been addressing shared concerns linked to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Several issues are especially pertinent for banking and finance practitioners. For additional detail and commentary, see Practice Note: Coronavirus (COVID-19) implications for Banking & Finance lawyers, which is updated frequently with news, practical guidance and analysis on the impact of COVID-19 developments. This Practice Note sets out governmental and regulatory actions taken in response to the pandemic from a lending standpoint, the effects on facility agreements—viewed from both borrower and lender perspectives—and a series of practical considerations relating to executing transactions. We have compiled COVID-19 FAQs, bringing together common questions that may arise on lending deals during the crisis. We add to this list on a regular basis. To access the questions, see Practice Note: Coronavirus (COVID-19)—Banking & Finance frequently asked questions [Archived]. Specialist financing transactions This Practice Note summarises core, general points to assess on...