Transparency Task Force

#goodfinance #financereform #remedyingrampantregulatoryrecklessness

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

📚 TTF'S BOOK OF THE WEEK

"The Key Man: The True Story of How the Global Elite Was Duped by a Capitalist Fairy Tale" by Simon Clark and Will Louch

A gripping true story of charisma, greed, and one of the biggest financial frauds in history.

Arif Naqvi, founder of Dubai-based private equity firm Abraaj, was the man the global elite trusted to do well by doing good. Bill Gates, Western governments, the UN, Interpol — all bought into his vision of "impact investing" to fight poverty and stabilise the Middle East. Investors compared him to a Mission: Impossible hero.

Then two Wall Street Journal reporters followed a whistleblower's tip — and uncovered a fraud that would see Naqvi arrested and facing up to 291 years in jail.

Spanning Asia, Africa, Europe and America, this is a story about how easily the world's elite can be fooled — and a stark warning about the opacity still baked into private equity and offshore finance today.

📖 Get your copy: https://t.co/RHkce9TAkP

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

📰 UKSA NEWSLETTER

UKSA is a not-for-profit, volunteer-led membership organisation that believes investors have responsibilities to society, not just rights.

They're committed to:

✅ Helping all investors and savers — member or not

✅ Being a trusted, independent voice the financial sector won't always publicise

✅ Championing the enjoyment of investing, especially in individual companies

Resolutely independent of financial and corporate interests, and answerable only to their members — there's a natural alignment with TTF's mission.

📄 Read their latest newsletter here: https://t.co/8nFksx9Dhe

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🗳️ OVER 1,450 PEOPLE HAVE HAD THEIR SAY! HAVE YOU, YET?

An important survey is examining the future of the City of London Corporation — should it stay as is, be reformed, or be abolished?

Led by Green Party peer @natalieben on behalf of the APPG on Investment Fraud and Fairer Financial Services @appgonifandffs, this matters because the Corporation holds real influence over financial services regulation — including through the City Remembrancer role.

The big question: does that influence serve the public interest, or mainly the banks and institutions that dominate the City?

Your response is anonymous — no names or emails published. Make your voice count 👇

🔗 Complete the survey:

https://t.co/iGJe7zQIyL

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

✒️ PENSIONS POLICY INSTITUTE: THE UK PENSIONS PRIMER 2026

Here’s an extract from the website:

“The UK Pensions Primer is the Pensions Policy Institute's comprehensive annual guide to the UK pensions system. Whether you're new to pensions policy or looking for a reliable reference, it provides a clear, accessible overview of how State and private pensions work, together with the latest policy and legislative developments.”

You can access full details here 👇

https://t.co/WjfJnnSlrF

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

📺 NEXTFLIX DOCUMENTARY: INSIDE THE TRUSTOR SCANDAL

Here’s a snippet from the webpage:

“Joachim Posener, alongside key insiders, revisits the snowballing financial scandal that followed the illegal purchase of a Swedish investment firm in the ‘90s — and who exposed it.

Inside the Trustor Scandal, a documentary film by Guldbagge winner Karin af Klintberg, is coming to Netflix on August 5.”

You can watch the programme here 👇

https://t.co/uizOQky4xV

You can watch the YouTube trailer for this programme here 👇

https://t.co/ewGM5S5Qw0

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

📺 We have just uploaded the recording of the event we ran Tuesday 21st July, entitled:

“The Simon Andriesz Story; and the Role of the Financial Conduct Authority”

The speakers were:

●     Simon Andriesz, British FBI Whistleblower

●     Andy Verity, Reporter/Radio & TV Presenter, BBC

●     George Patellis, Connaught Whistleblower

●     Paul Carlier, FX, Financial Markets & Banking Consultant

●     Mark Wright, Managing Director, BankConfidential

●     Steve Middleton, Consultant, BankConfidential

●     Gary Smith, CEO & Legal Director, Meridian Legal Services

●     Ian Byrne MP, MP for Liverpool West Derby

You can watch the recording here 👇

https://t.co/xup05OvCEj

If you can, please share this video widely within your network/on social media.

🗣️ Andy Agathangelou says:

“Whistleblowers play a remarkably important role in protecting the public interest. They are often the people who have the courage to do the right thing - to speak up and speak out when they see malpractice, misconduct, or wrongdoing - but pay a huge price for doing so, especially when let down by a regulator such as the FCA.

At TTF, we believe it is essential that regulators and enforcement agencies have the right frameworks in place to properly support and protect whistleblowers. When people bravely come forward, they deserve to be treated swiftly, professionally, considerately and humanely. When that does not happen, it is deeply disappointing - and frankly, shameful.

The Simon Andriesz event was a powerful reminder of why these issues matter. It was an opportunity to shine a light on the experiences of whistleblowers and to ask whether the authorities are doing enough to fulfil their responsibilities; and even if they act in bad faith to protect themselves at the expense of the whistleblowers.

We are incredibly grateful to Simon Andriesz, Andy Verity, George Patellis, Paul Carlier, Mark Wright, Steve Middleton, Ian Byrne MP and Gary Smith for sharing their experiences and insights. It was a very special event, and we will continue working together to ensure that, sooner or later, the full truth gets out, one way or another.”

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🎙️ New Following the Rules Podcast

How do regulators balance growth, innovation, financial stability and consumer protection when the demands often pull in different directions?

In the latest episode of Following the Rules, host Lucy McNulty speaks with Lyndon Nelson, former Deputy CEO of the Prudential Regulation Authority and Executive Director at the Bank of England, and Gavin Stewart, former Chief Risk Officer at the Financial Conduct Authority. Together, they explore the realities of modern regulation and discuss insights from their book, Building Better Regulators: The Art of the Impossible.

The conversation examines:

• Why regulation is about managing trade-offs, not eliminating risk.

• Why regulators remain some of the least understood public institutions.

• How political expectations for growth, competitiveness and stability can create impossible demands.

• What it really takes to build better regulators in an increasingly complex world.

Whether you work in regulation, financial services or public policy, this episode offers timely insights into the challenges shaping today's regulatory landscape.

🎧 Listen to the episode here:

https://t.co/T5Nboyebxu

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🗞️ @Better_Finance NEWS

●     Press Release: BETTER FINANCE backs cross-sector call for EU Code of Conduct to tackle online fraud and scams 👇

https://t.co/gmRRNIpxNq

TTF is proud to be an associate member of Better Finance.

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

✉️ COMMENT LETTER: AFREF opposes weakening of SEC company stock offering rules

Here’s a comment from Patrick Woodall, Managing Director, Americans for Financial Reform:

“View or download a PDF of the letter here 👇

https://t.co/Cv1DE3Wrt7

Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund submitted a comment letter opposing the SEC’s sweeping Registered Offering Reform proposal, which would expand access to short-form and shelf registration while weakening longstanding public float, seasoning, disclosure, and state-law safeguards. The proposal would expose investors to greater risks from smaller and less-seasoned issuers, is based on an inadequate economic analysis, and would improperly pre-empt state registration requirements that provide important protections for retail investors.”

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

NEW RESEARCH: How long do the bodies that judge us keep their decisions public?

Blind Justice UK has published The Memory of Justice, the second in its transparency research series — auditing 12 ombudsman schemes, regulators, and disciplinary tribunals on whether they publish decisions in full, searchable, and for how long.

The findings are stark:

⚖️ A solicitor's strike-off stays public for 60 years

⚖️ The Financial Ombudsman has published every final decision since 2013 — none removed

🚫 The Legal Ombudsman deletes consumer complaint records after just 12 months

🚫 The Energy Ombudsman publishes nothing

🚫 The PHSO's decisions portal has published nothing since March 2024 — no explanation given

Every finding is verified against each body's own website, with a full evidence annex published alongside so anyone can check the work.

This goes to the heart of what transparency in oversight should mean.

📄 Read the report: https://t.co/YPSqeeeovA

📰 Coverage: Law Gazette asks whether ombudsman rulings should last forever 👇

https://t.co/3Gb6F9R3jD

[Lorraine Morris @MLorrM]

5/

Equally mysterious is how Ulster Bank appears to have been able to enforce security related to this scam through the Irish courts.

🔹If the underlying arrangements rested on false representations, undisclosed / aka hidden credit lines & documentation that never created a genuine linked hedge, then the enforceability of the associated security should have been open to fundamental challenge.

🔹This raises many questions that go beyond the original product sales by Ulster Bank.

🔹The conclusion is unavoidable. Where the documentation was never properly tied in the industry-standard way, there was never a genuine hedge in place for the customer — only a scam dressed up as protection.

🔹When rates collapsed the economic reality became impossible to ignore.

🔹That the courts continued to enforce the related security, despite these foundational defects, points to a deeper erosion of property rights under the Constitution and the rule of law.

🔹Of equal concern is that, even today, pleadings continue to be placed before the courts in which senior counsel have described these fraudulent arrangements as having simply “fixed the rate.”

🔹Such a characterisation is difficult to reconcile with the actual structure and economic effect of the products.

🔹When advocates of standing advance descriptions that appear to obscure rather than clarify the true nature of what was sold, confidence in the integrity of the process is undermined.

🔹The scale of the extraction of assets from Ireland by RBS remains extraordinary.

@ArturNadol7566 @Wftproof @stevemiddi1 @BankConfidenti1 @TransparencyTF @BlowersIreland @NorthernPeasant @CarshaltonArt @efgbricklayer @LSRAIreland

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

✒️ Insuring disaster 2026 - ShareAction's assessment of 40 of the world's largest insurers

Here’s an extract from the webpage:

“Insurance underpins the world's economy. But insurance companies face a deepening tension: by underwriting and investing in activities that drive climate change, biodiversity loss and social harm, insurers are misaligned with their purpose, and are increasing their own exposure to systemic risk.

Now in its fourth iteration, ShareAction’s insurance benchmark evaluates the world’s largest insurance companies on how well their policies and disclosures address key societal and environmental risks.”

You can access full details, including a link to download the report here 👇

https://t.co/lJkBdtq3Tv

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

📽️ UPCOMING FILM: Everyone is lying to you for money

“In Everyone Is Lying to You for Money, actor and author Ben McKenzie turns investigator, pulling back the curtain on the cryptocurrency industry and the culture of hype, misinformation, and speculation that fueled its explosive rise. What began as a promise of financial freedom has evolved into a volatile ecosystem rife with fraud and reckless gambling, carrying with it devastating consequences for everyday people.

Through firsthand reporting, expert interviews, and a clear-eyed examination of major collapses and scandals, the film traces how crypto became one of the most aggressively marketed financial products of the modern era—and how warning signs were ignored, dismissed, or deliberately obscured. As fortunes are made and lost, Everyone Is Lying to You for Money asks a sobering question: who benefits from the chaos, and who is left to clean up the damage?

Accessible, urgent, and often darkly ironic, the film is both a cautionary tale and a call for accountability—cutting through the noise to expose a system built on speculation, influence, and belief rather than truth.”

You can access full details here 👇

https://t.co/zMR2UydxeL

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

📺 FINANCIAL SERVICES REGULATION COMMITTEE: REGULATION OF THE CONSUMER INSURANCE MARKET

The meeting took place on Wednesday 22nd July at 10am.

Witnesses included:

●     Alistair Hargreaves, Chief Executive of UK Insurance, Admiral Group

●     Jason Storah, CEO of UK & Ireland General Insurance, Aviva

●     Nick Turner, Group Chief Executive, NFU Mutual

You can access the meeting on Parliament TV catch up here 👇

https://t.co/Dgv9jeNWy8

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🗞️ ARTICLE: Octopus's £3.2bn inheritance tax scheme raises alarm bells

You can access the article which features a comment from TTF here 👇

https://t.co/9skgwtpNdy

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

Andy Burnham can make his immediate mark on ethics in public life

The Ethics and Integrity Commission has released its long-awaited report on lobbying rules and post-government jobs — originally commissioned by Keir Starmer before scandals including freebiegate and the Mandelson affair came to define his premiership.

Now it's incoming PM Andy Burnham's turn to decide how to respond, with the Commission calling for major reforms to the rules governing standards in public life.

Tim Durrant from the Institute for Government sets out why this is a real early test of Burnham's commitment to ethics in government.

Read the full comment: https://t.co/Bh164UAtJR

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🗞️ ARTICLE: FOS APPOINTS CEO AND CHIEF OMBUDSMAN 👇

https://t.co/crb9ze3hmZ

Here’s some more media coverage about this topic:

●     FOS names permanent CEO and chief ombudsman 👇

https://t.co/Zx0PDO4fdr

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

📢 We've just issued this week's edition of the Transparency Times! Stay informed, stay ahead — sign up for our free weekly newsletter and get the stories that matter straight to your inbox.

👉 https://t.co/G3xZCN7Lec

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🗞️ City of London Corporation: calls grow for reform of the medieval body 👇

https://t.co/gIIaMVve5C

@MoorgateMermaid
@FTAdviser

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🗳️ OVER 1,300 PEOPLE HAVE HAD THEIR SAY — HAVE YOU?

An important project led by Green Party peer Natalie Bennett, on behalf of the APPG on Investment Fraud and Fairer Financial Services, is examining whether the City of London Corporation should be left as is, reformed, or abolished.

Why does this matter? The Corporation wields significant influence over financial services regulation and legislation — including through the role of the City Remembrancer.

❓ The key question: Does that influence serve the public interest, or primarily the banks and institutions that dominate the City?

Your voice matters. The survey is anonymous — no names or email addresses published.

👉 Have your say here:

https://t.co/iGJe7zQIyL

[Transparency Task Force @TransparencyTF]

🗞️ Here’s some recent articles by FinCrime Central Founder, Fred Kahn:

● Organised gang money laundering investigation involves international football player 👇

https://t.co/ejrNdqumFX

● Former Epoch CFO faces ten year prison term and 67 million dollar penalty 👇

https://t.co/6Plb9hRHrf

● Bank employee faces jail time for stealing banks and laundering with others 👇

https://t.co/8w8zTXVrBY

● FINTRAC fines Atlantic Lottery Corporation Inc. $212K for compliance gaps

You can access all articles here 👇

https://t.co/cl2NGU5sm8