On 18 July 2025, the UK Government announced a lowering of the Oil Price Cap (āOPCā) to further inhibit Russiaās ability to use oil revenues to finance its illegal invasion of Ukraine. The OPC was first introduced in December 2022 to reduce Russiaās oil revenues in response to the invasion of Ukraine that same year. The OPC prevents G7 companies from shipping, insuring or servicing any Russian crude oil sold above the OPC price of…
On 21 July 2025, the UK government issued the General Trade Licence: Russia Sanctions ā Sectoral Software and Technology (the āSectoral Software Licenceā) under Regulation 65 of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (the āUK Russia Regulationsā). The Sectoral Software Licence came into force on 21 July 2025 and will expire on 20 October 2025. The Sectoral Software Licence authorises providers located in or operating from within the UK and UK persons to transfer…
On 17 July 2025, the UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (āOFSIā) launched a series of new online forms for parties looking to submit licence applications or report information such as suspected breaches of financial sanctions. Ā The new forms aim to streamline the submission process and to avoid incomplete or incorrect submissions through the introduction of mandatory fields and built-in guidance notes, thereby reducing the need for follow-up questions and enabling OFSI to provide…
At the Annual Compliance conference recently held in London, Baker McKenzie hosted a session on āThe evolving national security, sanctions and export controls landscapeā. This session introduced the concept of the ātrade toolboxā ā a growing set of measures designed to manage national security risks through trade and investment restrictions. Speakers highlighted the increasing complexity of global compliance, particularly in relation to business relating to China, Russia, and in the Middle East. China: outbound investment,…