Syed boasts a great depth of experience in serious fraud, financial crime and multi-jurisdictional investigations. He is proficient in both civil and criminal cases, where there is an allegation of corporate wrongdoing. 

Syed begins with an overview of offences defined by the Bribery Act 2010, outlining its application, origins and impact. He gives guidance on adequate procedures, highlighting six key principles. He ends with a look to the future to consider the grounds for potential reform.

Key words/topics:

Bribery Act 2010

The Prevention of Corruption Act 1889

The Prevention of Corruption Act 1906

The Prevention of Corruption Act 1916

Anti-bribery in Vulnerable Jurisdictions

Anti-bribery in High-Risk Sectors

Compliance obligations

Adequate procedures

Bribery investigations

More about Syed:

Syed has substantial experience in advising corporate entities and their directors and officers in relation to investigations conducted by all the major enforcement agencies. He has also built an impressive reputation in the field of asset-tracing and recovery, with a respected track record regarding international disputes where urgent relief is required involving freezing orders and recovering misappropriated assets.

Syed is recognised for his sector-leading, pioneering cryptocurrency work, having secured a number of significant legal firsts when representing institutions and individuals. His specialist expertise in civil recovery proceedings under Part 5 of the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) has also led to him recording notable successes for clients in national and international cases.

He is known for his abilities in multijurisdictional, worldwide asset recovery cases – including obtaining and defending the full range of injunctions – high-stakes commercial and financial disputes and cross-border investigations involving attacks on clients’ interests by numerous governments or agencies. His skill in defending high-profile corruption, fraud and regulatory allegations and his ability to negotiate with investigators have ensured his clients receive the strongest representation.

The Chambers UK Guide regularly ranks Syed as a solicitor to watch. It has called him “a very technically gifted lawyer’’ and has said he “gets on top of all the facts in complex cases’’. Chambers has described him as “very committed to the work he does’’ and said he “leaves no stone unturned and has a passion for what he does’’. It has repeatedly highlighted his expertise in POCA work and asset recovery proceedings.

His clients include corporates and their directors, financial institutions, hedge funds, high net worth individuals and international private clients around the world. Syed has a particular interest in litigation arising from mergers and acquisitions, derivatives and securities offerings (IPO’s, SPAC IPO’s and debt offerings) and works with private equity funds and private sponsors for public companies.

He is adept at advising corporate entities and their directors and officers on their regulatory and compliance obligations and in investigations conducted by agencies such as the Serious Fraud Office, Financial Conduct Authority, National Crime Agency and HM Revenue & Customs. His ability to assess complex issues, establish the facts and analyse challenging sets of circumstances have seen him excel on internal investigations carried out for Rahman Ravelli’s corporate clients.

Syed routinely advises clients in FCA investigations into alleged market abuse, breaches of regulated activities and unauthorised trading. He is sought by asset management firms and chief investment officers at hedge funds facing enforcement proceedings and financial services litigation.

The Legal 500 has called Syed “a creative thinker’’, “a master of detail’’ and someone who “entirely devotes himself to his cases’’. It has drawn attention to the wide variety of global corporate wrongdoing and multi-jurisdictional bribery and corruption investigations he has worked on and his cryptocurrency expertise. It has praised his “incredible depth of experience when it comes to fraud matters, and in particular those with an international element or where the National Crime Agency are involved.’’ The 2022 edition says he is “without question one of the leading lawyers on cryptocurrency tracing and recovery, having worked on very high profile and pioneering cases in this area.’’

Syed is also in demand to work on cases where there is the possibility of securing a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) for clients.  The Legal 500 has noted Rahman Ravelli’s expertise in advising on DPAs and recognised that Syed “goes the extra mile to get the best results for his clients in leading on a multi-jurisdictional matter concerning this area”.

His recent work has involved global energy sector corruption allegations, major financial services cases, fintech companies and many of the most complex worldwide asset recovery cases.

(See https://www.rahmanravelli.co.uk/about-us/senior-lawyers/syedur-rahman/ for more information)