Zia Ullah is Co-Global Head of Corporate Crime and Investigations at Eversheds Sutherland and a Board Member of Eversheds Sutherland (International) LLP.
Zia is a globally recognized authority in International Sanctions and has led multiple cross-border sanctions investigations. He advises on all aspects of corporate and financial crime and was previously the Global Head of Sanctions at Barclays. Zia is a current FCA ‘Skilled Person’ for Financial Crime.
Zia and his team have provided strategic advice to over 100 global institutions with respect to the legal, regulatory and commercial issues arising from the expansion of UK, EU and US sanctions against Russia following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. His team has also advised on the impact on sanctions compliance frameworks, divestment activity in Russia, the application of exemptions and licences, and the reporting requirements in light of potential breaches of sanctions.
Zia and Victoria Turner co-authored a chapter for Global Investigations Review’s first ever book on sanctions compliance - “The Guide to Sanctions” – Zia’s team also publishes the only global guide on international sanctions setting out details on over 70 jurisdictions sanctions compliance requirements. Zia’s team also created the Global Sanctions Tool which was nominated as Best Client Innovation in The Lawyer Awards 2024.
Zia is co-chair of the UK Finance Associate Members’ Sanctions Committee and is also a member of HM Treasury’s Senior Implementation Group, a body comprised of all government departments with responsibility for the UK’s sanctions regime. Zia is also a committee member at the Fraud Lawyers’ Association.
Zia is ranked in Band 1 of Chambers for Financial Sanctions, is ranked in the Global Elite in Who’s Who Legal for sanctions and recommended for business crime and asset recovery. Zia was included in the Lawyer’s Hot 100 for 2023.
Latest Insights
- legal updatesEU adopts its 20th sanctions package against Russia and Belarus
- legal updatesUK Government introduces new trade sanctions end-use controls
- legal updates
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Zia's recent experience includes:
- leading a team of 70 lawyers and investigators reviewing over 1 million payments and 20,000 customers on behalf of a UK bank investigating historic sanctions violations, reporting to OFAC, the FCA and OFSI
- project managing a large-scale (14 million transactions) look-back of historic OFAC sanctions compliance at the world’s largest Insurance sector-specific outsourcing company and leading the investigation and resulting voluntary disclosure to OFAC/OFSI
- acting on behalf of Barclays in the reported case of Elaine Hmicho v. Barclays Bank PLC [2015] EWHC 1757 (QB), the leading UK decision on ownership and control in relation to EU and UK sanctions
- FCA-approved Skilled Person on a large-scale s.166 review of AML and sanctions compliance at the London HQ of an international bank
- providing sanctions advice/training to over 50 international financial institutions
- Buy Side Sanctions Screening, February 10, 2022, The Investment Association
- IP Geo-Blocking: Friend or Foe to the Compliance Professional?, February 2, 2022, ACAMS, Global Sanctions Space Summit
- Financial and trade sanctions for the insurance sector, December 21, 2021, Thomson Reuters Practical Law Guide
- The Guide to Sanctions, Second Edition, October 20, 2021, Global Investigations Review
- Eversheds Sutherland Global Sanctions Guide
- Ranked in The Legal 500
- Listed in Who's Who Legal for International Sanctions
- Acritas Star lawyer
- Committee member of The Fraud Lawyers Association
- Co-chair of the UK Finance Sanctions Panel
- Legal Practice Course, College of Law, London, 1996-1997
- Common Professional Examination, College of Law, London, 1995-1996
- BSc (Hons) in Chemistry, UCL, 1991-1995