Opinion

June 3, 2024 @ 6:44 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Richard Andrews, KPMG’s head of ESG for financial services, has recently commented on the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) anti-greenwashing rules (AGR), which come into force recently. Andrews noted: “While we expect the FCA to take a pragmatic approach and give authorised firms some leeway… Read More

June 1, 2024 @ 8:17 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

UK Finance has recently released its financial services manifesto, outlining key priorities the next government should focus on. David Postings, Chief Executive of UK Finance, said: “The UK’s financial services sector is a global success story and one any future government should seek to partner… Read More

May 31, 2024 @ 4:30 pm By Suki Gao  |  

To the surprise of nobody, female-led SMEs often face significant hurdles in the hyper-competitive global marketplace, primarily due to systemic biases and gender disparities entrenched within financial systems. Studies have consistently shown that women entrepreneurs encounter more challenges in securing financing compared to their male… Read More

May 30, 2024 @ 11:48 am By JD Alois  |  

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce has publicly shared a comment on a consultation in the UK. Launched last April, the proposal is for a Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS) initiated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority and the Bank of England. The deadline for feedback from interested… Read More

May 29, 2024 @ 10:13 am By JD Alois  |  

Crowdcheck is one of the foundational firms that entered the securities crowdfunding sector, supporting issuers and platforms that enable online capital formation. Crowdcheck is probably the top legal services firm preparing Reg A+ documents for issuers, which the Securities and Exchange Commission must qualify for… Read More

May 29, 2024 @ 8:46 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Karim Haji, Global and UK Head of Financial Services at KPMG, comments on today’s March Money and Credit statistical release from the Bank of England. Karim noted: “A rise in consumer borrowing in March signals that many stretched households continue to battle the cost of… Read More

May 28, 2024 @ 11:07 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Pascal Gauthier, CEO at Ledger, says that the shipping of their new device, Ledger Stax, has begun for pre-order customers. Pascal Gauthier from Ledger notes in a blog post that the first pre-orders will be “shipped over the coming weeks, and new orders will be… Read More

May 28, 2024 @ 3:12 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Colin Cunningham, Head of Tokenization & Alliances at Chainlink Labs, recalls that it was 2008 and he was in the back half of my economics degree when the global financial crisis struck. Insulated from the world behind college walls, Colin Cunningham says he observed former classmates… Read More

May 28, 2024 @ 1:22 am By Omar Faridi  |  

UK Finance recently released their latest fraud report. While sharing insights on this key update, the team at Lending Standards Board has provided their perspective on the findings. For background, the LSB is responsible for overseeing the CRM Code, which has reportedly been the “only… Read More

May 26, 2024 @ 2:51 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Every economic cycle has its “currency war,” according to an update from iBanFirst. In the 1920s, France, Germany, and Belgium “devalued their currencies to return to the gold standard, which had been abandoned during World War I.” In the 1930s, major global economies “resorted to… Read More

May 22, 2024 @ 12:48 pm By JD Alois  |  

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has posted commentary on the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century (FIT21) Act. First introduced in 2023, the legislation has recently re-emerged, moving forward in the House and a looming floor vote. The legislation aims to clarify the digital… Read More

May 22, 2024 @ 12:28 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has penalized the Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE), the operator of the New York Stock Exchange, for failing to notify the SEC promptly of a cyber intrusion. ICE has agreed to pay a $10 million penalty to settle the allegations without… Read More

May 22, 2024 @ 10:45 am By JD Alois  |  

This past week, the California state legislature approved an Artificial Intelligence (AI) bill, SB 1047 that is being described as undermining innovation and hampering the development of the new technology. Joe Lonsdale, founder of Palantir (NYSE:PLTR) – a firm engaged in AI development, slammed the… Read More

May 21, 2024 @ 8:53 am By Omar Faridi  |  

KPMG has commented on the important step on the road to ISSB adoption in the United Kingdom. KPMG recently shared key insights on the announcement that the UK Government has established the UK Sustainability Disclosure Technical Advisory Committee. Providing their perspective on the announcement that… Read More

May 20, 2024 @ 5:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

Recently, CI covered the rise in venture capital money going into digital assets. There has been renewed interest in risk capital going into crypto firms. In Q1 2024, crypto startups experienced an increase of 40.3% increase in venture funding and a 44.7% jump in deal… Read More

May 20, 2024 @ 7:39 am By Omar Faridi  |  

While sharing insights at the European Anti-Financial Crime Summit, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland Derville Rowland said: “The commitment of European leaders to introduce a single rulebook for Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and the creation of a new European AML supervisory and financial… Read More

May 19, 2024 @ 9:32 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Mark Branson, President of the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), warns against trying to pay for the green and digital transformation of the European economy by weakening capital requirements. Branson said at the BaFin’s conference in Frankfurt am Main on 14 May: “Otherwise we… Read More

May 18, 2024 @ 2:26 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Michael Linford, Chief Financial Officer of Affirm (NASDAQ: AFRM) notes that new innovations often face harsh pushback from incumbents. Michael Linford from Affirm explains that when it’s “well-informed and anchored in what’s right for the consumer, this is generally a good thing.” Linford adds that… Read More

May 18, 2024 @ 9:51 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Klarna explains that it supports the “principle” of sharing data with credit bureaus, and they do share data with bureaus in the UK. They are not sharing data in the US because they claim that the bureaus “do not have proper models to responsibly process… Read More

May 17, 2024 @ 10:01 am By Omar Faridi  |  

We spoke to co-founder of PayFuture Technologies Dubai, Zaki Farooq on why businesses should overcome their reluctance to enter emerging markets to tap into a world of opportunity. Emerging markets are one of the fastest developing sectors of the global economy and many new businesses are establishing… Read More