Archives

September 25, 2024 @ 12:34 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) intends to launch a market study into how pure protection insurance products are sold following concerns that competition is not working well in the market. The study will be launched later in 2024/25. Pure protection products are designed “to… Read More

September 13, 2024 @ 8:26 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has charged Mr Olumide Osunkoya, who is 45 and resides in London, for “unlawfully running multiple crypto ATMs without FCA registration.” Crypto ATMs are machines that “allow you to buy or convert money into cryptoassets.” Mr Osunkoya is accused of running… Read More

August 8, 2024 @ 2:17 pm By JD Alois  |  

While the UK is pretty crypto-friendly compared to the US, this does not mean you can flout existing rules. Yesterday, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a statement warning digital asset firms to comply with rules. If certain unnamed firms do not improve, “we will act,” the… Read More

August 5, 2024 @ 5:44 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has shared an update on the Dormant Assets Scheme expansion covering Investment assets and client money. The FCA noted that they have amended their rules and guidance in ode “to enable dormant investment assets and client money to be… Read More

July 29, 2024 @ 11:24 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has issued a statement affirming its mission to simplify and reduce the cost of firms in need of growth capital. The FCA seeks to reduce the burden on businesses raising money. The announcement follows the new “Consumer Duty,” which… Read More

July 27, 2024 @ 1:31 pm By JD Alois  |  

The UK is looking to boost access to capital for private firms – beyond the existing crowdfunding regime and established exchanges. Currently, for approved investment crowdfunding platforms it is difficult to raise more than £5 million due to prospectus requirements. The proposal aims to make… Read More

July 26, 2024 @ 11:12 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK is trying to reinvigorate its moribund public markets by making it easier to list shares and updating new rules. Today, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is announcing final rules that will replace the current prospectus regulation to become a public firm. A consultation has commenced, closing in October…. Read More

July 25, 2024 @ 12:37 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority confirms its plan to protect access to cash for consumers and small businesses. Banks and building societies will need “to weigh up if local communities lack access to cash services, like branches and ATMs, and plug significant gaps, under new… Read More

July 25, 2024 @ 9:31 am By Omar Faridi  |  

CB Payments Limited (CBPL) has been fined £3,503,546 by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for repeatedly breaching a requirement that “prevented the firm from offering services to high-risk customers.” CBPL is part of the Coinbase Group, which operates a cryptoasset trading platform that is… Read More

July 15, 2024 @ 10:38 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), along with the Payments Systems Regulator (PSR), are seeking feedback on the rise and use of digital wallets. Today, digital wallets are ubiquitous. From smartphone-based applications to hybrid crypto wallets, the use of physical cash is on the decline. Regulators… Read More

July 12, 2024 @ 7:54 pm By JD Alois  |  

This past week, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) posted updated rules designed to encourage more public share listings in the UK. The “overhaul” of the rules are part of a broader push to ensure and grow the UK’s status of a leading global financial… Read More

June 28, 2024 @ 8:22 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced that it has appointed the members of our advisory committee on secondary markets for the period June 2024 to June 2026. The UK Secondary Markets Advisory Committee supports the FCA’s work “in wholesale secondary markets in equities, fixed… 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 23, 2024 @ 8:48 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has fined HSBC £6,280,100 for the poor treatment of its customers. According to the FCA, HSBC failed to properly consider people’s circumstances when they had missed payments. This transgression took place between June 2017 and October 2018. The FCA… Read More

April 26, 2024 @ 9:01 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Ahead of the anti-greenwashing rule coming into force on 31 May, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is supporting industry with guidance to help them meet the standard. The new rule is designed to protect consumers “by ensuring sustainable products and services they are sold… Read More

April 25, 2024 @ 4:13 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Commenting on the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)’s strategic approach to the use of Artificial Intelligence in the UK financial services sector, Karim Haji, global and UK head of financial services at KPMG, said: “It’s hard to overstate the potential capabilities of AI for a… Read More

April 13, 2024 @ 2:30 pm By Michael Wong  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has called for the establishment of a new industry body to enhance the functioning of Britain’s “highly concentrated” consumer credit ratings market, which it says is currently not serving consumers well, Reuters has reported. The consumer credit ratings market,… Read More

April 10, 2024 @ 11:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has issued a report on consumer debt. The FCA states that 7.4 million people are struggling to pay bills and credit card debt (January 2024).  While this is lower than the 10.9 million in January 2023 who were encountering… Read More

April 3, 2024 @ 5:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

While everyone understands that securities will inevitably become digital, policymakers have been slow to provide an ecosystem to support the nuances intrinsic to the transition from analog. Eventually, digital securities will become the dominant sector of digital assets, and clear-cut rules are needed. Today, the… Read More

April 1, 2024 @ 8:46 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Bank of England and FCA are leading a joint transformation program with industry to transform data collection from the UK financial sector. They published a future strategy for “achieving this, encompassing the regulator’s response to industry’s recommendations.” The Bank of England and the Financial… Read More