Regulation & Compliance - Long Reads, News, Articles & Research: Finextra

Why the Phone-paid Services Authority is resetting its regulatory approach

The Phone-paid Services Authority, the PSA, is the UK regulator for content, goods and services charged to a phone bill. This encompasses the goods and services that can be bought by charging the cost to the phone bill or pre-pay account and typically include charity donations by text, music streaming, broadcast competitions, directory enquiries, ...

25 May 2021 /regulation

What does the FCA’s consultation into SPAC listings mean for UK fintech?

Paige McNamee

What does the FCA’s consultation into SPAC listings mean for UK fintech?

The FCA’s four-week consultation into Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) has begun, with decisions around strengthening investor protections expected to be announced and in place by early summer 2021. The consultation which proposes to amend rules to allow an alternative approach for listed SPACs comes at an inflection point in the glob...

12 May 2021 /regulation

The Westminster Series: Following UK Fintech Week, we are strong

Chris Holmes Peer at House of Lords

The Westminster Series: Following UK Fintech Week, we are strong

Last week’s UK Fintech week was one of the best yet. Without a hand shook, stand up lunch stuffed, or business card traded, Innovate Finance demonstrated just what can be achieved through modern means to bring our community together to such great effect. The Chancellor’s opening keynote set the tone, an exemplary example of value over volume. He ha...

28 April 2021 /regulation

Greensill’s demise is not enough to dampen UK's fintech spirits

Paige McNamee

Greensill’s demise is not enough to dampen UK's fintech spirits

As Greensill Capital’s spectacular fall from grace continues to play out in Westminster, questions are circling around what the potential ramifications of its demise signify for UK fintech. In the same week that Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced several updates to the UK’s CBDC strategy and confirmed that recommendations set out in The Kalifa Revie...

23 April 2021 /regulation

Risky Business Series: An evolution of risk management

Richard Dupree CEO and Founder at Riskliance

Risky Business Series: An evolution of risk management

This piece was co-authored by Richard Dupree and Joshua Rapp. I have written about other aspects of risk management and will continue to do so, but each idea for a new article brings me back to the same fundamental question. Why do we have risk management? What is the value of effective risk management and are financial services companies optimis...

22 April 2021 /regulation

Is the Bank of England’s CBDC announcement overdue?

Paige McNamee

Is the Bank of England’s CBDC announcement overdue?

Chancellor Rishi Sunak recently announced several significant updates to enhance the UK’s competitive advantage in fintech, one of which pertains to exploration of a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC). A CBDC is a central bank-issued digital money, denominated in the national unit of account, representing a liability of the central bank a...

21 April 2021 /regulation

The Westminster Series: Digital must become the day to day

Chris Holmes Peer at House of Lords

The Westminster Series: Digital must become the day to day

Last week Coinbase floated on the NASDAQ and this week, UK Fintech Week, started with the Chancellor’s announcement of a joint Bank of England and Treasury taskforce on Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC), so it seems sane to stop and consider whether we are at a bit of a moment. Are we accelerating towards that digitally enabled, underpinned ...

20 April 2021 /regulation

Crypto Regulation Series: An exploration of the UK's cryptoasset landscape

Stephen Elam Partner at Cooke Young & Keidan

Crypto Regulation Series: An exploration of the UK's cryptoasset landscape

This piece was co-authored by Stephen Elam and Peter Stewart, of Cooke Young & Keidan. Less than three years ago, the Parliament’s Treasury Committee referred to cryptoasset markets as a “Wild West”, in which consumers were “afforded very little protection from the litany of risks”. As crypto markets developed at a rapid pace, there was consid...

29 March 2021 /regulation

Will boosting the UK Government's role in fintech drive tangible change?

Paige McNamee

Will boosting the UK Government's role in fintech drive tangible change?

Incoming Finextra Contributor Lord Chris Holmes, Member of the UK House of Lords, recognises the role fintech will play into the future of UK financial services and is loudly championing its cause. Finextra’s conversation with Holmes could not be more timely. While Ron Kalifa OBE’s comprehensive review into Fintech in the UK was welcomed by the in...

22 March 2021 /regulation

An in-depth look into the Kalifa Fintech Review ahead of the 2021 Budget

Paige McNamee

An in-depth look into the Kalifa Fintech Review ahead of the 2021 Budget

The release of Ron Kalifa OBE’s Review into the future of UK fintech set off a tidal wave of support across the industry. The Review outlines a plan to “bolster” the UK’s dominance in a global setting, and warns that “the trajectory of UK fintech is at an inflection point of opportunity – and risk. While the UK’s position is well established, its...

02 March 2021 /regulation

How digital banks’ legal departments weathered the Covid-19 storm

Paige McNamee

How digital banks’ legal departments weathered the Covid-19 storm

With digital platforms, smaller teams, and often cloud-based infrastructure, it seems that fresh-faced fintech banks weathered the Covid-19 storm better than their incumbent counterparts. More specifically, their legal departments did. According to a 2020 report by PwC, 62% of legal executives are very or moderately concerned about how major disru...

26 February 2021 /regulation

Why digitising corporate onboarding should be at the top of banks’ agenda

Paige McNamee

Why digitising corporate onboarding should be at the top of banks’ agenda

First impressions matter. First impressions set the tone of a relationship, they inform how an initial interaction may blossom into a mutually beneficial affair, or (god forbid), how it may fizzle into a regretful obligation mired by conflict and frustration. The same logic rings true for financial institutions as they navigate the challenge of onb...

18 December 2020 /regulation

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