Related services and key industries
Biography
Lizzie Cox is a financial services lawyer based in London. She advises clients on contentious matters, including internal and external investigations and enforcement proceedings involving a variety of regulators, such as the FCA, FRC and Ofgem. She regularly advises clients on anti-money laundering liabilities and reporting obligations under the UK Proceeds of Crime Act, as well as compliance issues under the UK Money Laundering Regulations.
Lizzie previously worked in our internal Compliance Team, advising the firm on the application of financial crime law and regulation, suspicious activity reporting and client due diligence, together with wider risk issues. She also has experience advising in relation to public and private corporate transactions.
Professional experience
Collapse all- Solicitor qualified in England & Wales 2015
- Advising a large accountancy firm in relation to an internal investigation into concerns raised by a number of individuals, primarily relating to culture of the firm; this involved conducting a fact-finding investigation regarding the extent to which there was any substance in the concerns raised and considering recommended next steps to address the findings.
- Advising a UK based merchant acquirer in response to concerns raised in the media regarding its conduct and activities, and in particular its compliance with the MLRs including the onboarding and ongoing monitoring of clients, and the Payment Services Regulations.
- Acting for a UK group in connection with a review of various portfolios of mortgage files. This included completing a complex legal and regulatory review of a sample of case files, conducting a detailed analysis of contractual obligations and potential liabilities, and advising on communications with the FCA, clients and borrowers.
- Advising a state-owned international bank in relation to an investigation into, amongst other things, a whistleblowing complaint against certain employees and others regarding the payment of "handling fees" and falsification of documents in return for securing customer mortgages. This also included advice in relation to the client's reporting obligations under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 ("POCA").
- Advising a large accountancy firm in relation to its reporting obligations to the NCA and FCA in respect of potential criminal offences and regulatory breaches committed by a FTSE 100 listed entity that the firm had audited before being made aware of the potential misconduct, specifically in relation to the firm's reporting obligations under POCA, the FCA Handbook and the FSMA Auditors Regulations 2001.
- Acting for a UK plc in connection with various money laundering issues, including consideration of submitting Suspicious Activity Reports to the NCA in accordance with POCA; reporting and disclosures to HMRC and the FCA; announcement to the market of inside information under the Listing Rules and remediation of issues identified.
- Acting for the UK subsidiary of an African multinational financial services institution in connection with a long-running FCA investigation and enforcement proceedings concerning its anti-money laundering systems and controls. This included responding to numerous information requests, attending interviews and negotiating the settlement of the proceedings, as well as securing the discontinuation of the investigation into one of the bank's SMF holders.
Insights
Financial Crime Spotlight: Money Laundering Controls in the Gambling Sector
Publication | August 05, 2024
Financial Services Academy AML
Webinar | May 01, 2024
Regulation Tomorrow Plus: Submitting better SARs - A guide for MLROs and in-house teams
Podcast | February 05, 2024