Episode 230

6th March – 8th March 2026

Sanctions

UK Government Outlines Licence Considerations for Trade Activities Under Belarus Sanctions Regime

The UK government has issued guidance which sets out the detailed considerations applied when assessing licence applications for activities restricted under the Belarus sanctions regime. It explains when licences may be granted across a wide range of controlled goods, technologies, and services. This includes military, dual‑use, critical‑industry, luxury goods, oil‑refining equipment, and various commodities. Additionally, the guidance highlights narrow exceptions for humanitarian aid, safety, diplomatic use, pre‑existing contracts, space launches, cyber‑security, and essential maintenance. It also clarifies circumstances where licences cannot be granted, especially where there is reasonable belief that goods or assistance would support Belarusian internal repression or military, aviation, space, or energy sectors. It forms part of the UK’s statutory guidance to help applicants understand whether their activities fall within permissible exceptions before applying.

Money Laundering

Spanish police arrest 12 suspects in a cross‑border money‑laundering ring which exploited Ukrainian women

Spanish authorities, supported by Europol, have dismantled a criminal network accused of exploiting Ukrainian women and laundering the proceeds through a complex web of bank accounts and shell companies, arresting 12 suspects and identifying 55 victims. The group allegedly recruited vulnerable women fleeing the war, coerced them into opening bank accounts, and then used those accounts to move illicit funds across Europe, masking the origins of criminal proceeds. The investigation uncovered extensive financial flows, forged documents, and coordinated activity across several countries, highlighting the growing trend of traffickers combining human exploitation with financial crime.

Fraud

Husband and Wife Banned as Directors After £9.8m Fake NHS Contract Scam

A couple, Tanveer and Tasneem Khan, have been banned as company directors for 13 and 10 years respectively after using a fabricated £9.8 million NHS Wales contract to deceive investors out of more than £2 million. Their company, Matz Medical Limited, collapsed in 2022 leaving creditors with losses exceeding £40 million, and investigations revealed forged NHS purchase orders, fake delivery notes, doctored bank records, and other falsified documents used to secure funding. Despite having been suspended from NHS Supply Chain frameworks since 2019 due to serious safety concerns, the couple continued raising money based on the non-existent ICU‑bed order. Tanveer Khan also remains subject to ongoing bankruptcy restrictions and a separate £16.5 million claim from administrators seeking recovery for losses caused to creditors.

Market Abuse

FCA Fines Wood Group £13m for Misleading Financial Statements

The Financial Conduct Authority has fined John Wood Group plc £12,993,700 for publishing misleading financial statements across its 2022, 2023, and half‑year 2024 results, after internal accounting judgments were improperly influenced to preserve previously stated performance figures. The regulator found that Wood Group lacked adequate systems and controls, leading to false or deceptive announcements which became known from late 2024, triggering a 78% share‑price collapse and eventual suspension in 2025. The FCA’s investigation, completed within nine months, cited breaches of Listing Rule 1.3.3R and Listing Principle 1, with Wood Group receiving a 30% penalty discount for early settlement.

FCA Sets Out 2026 Consumer‑Investment Priorities to Build Trust, Confidence, and Stronger Financial‑Crime Controls

In a speech at the TISA Inclusive Investing Conference, the FCA’s director of consumer investments, Lucy Castledine, outlined the regulator’s 2026 priorities, emphasising the need to strengthen trust, improve consumer outcomes, and bolster financial‑crime controls across a rapidly evolving investment landscape. She highlighted the launch of a new annual Regulatory Priorities report, the upcoming targeted‑support regime, and ongoing work to improve risk disclosures and expand consumer access to investments, stressing that a resilient investment culture requires clear communication, strong governance, and active collaboration between firms, policymakers, and regulators.

Other Financial Crime

Global Financial Integrity Urged as Essential to Tackling Inequality, Climate Action, and Democratic Erosion

A UN DESA interview with Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz argues that weak financial integrity, which is marked by tax abuse, corruption, and financial secrecy, undermines public services, widens inequality, erodes democracy, and constrains climate action, making transparency and coordinated international tax cooperation essential to sustainable development. Stiglitz stresses that solutions already exist, including public beneficial‑ownership registries, global asset tracking, and automatic information exchange, but require political resolve and multilateral collaboration to overcome systemic failures which allow hidden wealth and illicit financial flows to flourish.

Cybercrime

Global phishing‑as‑a‑service platform dismantled in major Europol‑led operation

A coordinated international operation has taken down a large phishing‑as‑a‑service platform which enabled cybercriminals worldwide to conduct credential‑harvesting campaigns at scale, following intelligence shared through Europol’s Cyber Intelligence Extension Programme. The action brought together law enforcement agencies and private‑sector partners to disrupt the platform’s infrastructure, seize servers, and identify operators and users, marking a significant blow against a service which streamlined the creation and deployment of phishing kits. Authorities emphasise that the takedown not only halts ongoing attacks but also provides valuable investigative leads into broader cybercrime networks.

Global operation dismantles LeakBase, a data‑leak marketplace with 142,000 users

International law‑enforcement agencies have taken down LeakBase, a large cybercrime forum used to trade and leak stolen personal and corporate data, following a coordinated operation led by Europol and involving authorities across multiple countries. The platform, which had amassed more than 142,000 registered users, is now offline, with its infrastructure seized and its administrators and key members under investigation. The action forms part of a wider effort to disrupt the criminal ecosystem around data breaches, identity theft, and ransomware, and investigators are now analysing the seized data to identify offenders and notify victims.