One could be forgiven, amidst the noise and glamour of the Leeds Reforms and the Mansion House speech, for having missed the snappily titled Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities etc.) (Amendment)...more
7/23/2025
/ Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) ,
Compliance ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Lenders ,
New Regulations ,
Payment Systems ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Requirements
On February 13, 2025, Australia passed legislation implementing its Scams Prevention Framework (SPF) aimed at protecting Australian consumers from scams. The design of the SPF was informed by a previous consultation which ran...more
On 29 April, the UK government published draft legislation which will bring currently unregulated cryptoassets, including stablecoins, within the scope of financial services regulation. This is the first of a number of...more
5/5/2025
/ Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Licensing Rules ,
New Legislation ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Stablecoins ,
UK
The UK Government has announced the abolition of the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), with a view to driving economic growth and reducing the burdens on business.
The practical impact on firms is yet to be seen, and the...more
The new Regulation (EU) 2024/886 on instant credit transfers in euros (IPR), amending the so-called SEPA Regulation, is here, and it’s time to gear up! Effective from April 8, 2024, the first set of obligations kicks in on...more
1/15/2025
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banking Sector ,
Compliance ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Eurozone ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Payment Systems ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements
In order to increase the use of instant credit transfers in euros at Union level, the EU legislators have amended Regulation (EU) No 260/2012 establishing technical and business requirements for credit transfers and direct...more
On October 24, 2024, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) jointly announced the implementation of the Shared Responsibility Framework (SRF) in relation to phishing...more
11/15/2024
/ Consultation Papers ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Fraud ,
Mobile Payments ,
Monetary Authority of Singapore ,
New Guidance ,
Phishing Scams ,
Scams ,
Singapore ,
Telecommunications
It has been a long time in gestation but finally, over three and a half years after the Woolard Review highlighted the potential risks of unregulated, but easily available, interest free credit facilities, we have the...more
On 25 October 2023, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) jointly published a consultation paper on a proposed Shared Responsibility Framework (SRF) in relation to...more
On 30 November 2023, the Treasury of the Australian Government released its consultation paper on a proposed Scams Code Framework (the Framework) which seeks to establish robust codes and targeted measures to reduce scam...more
The PRA has published its final policy on the requirements for non-systemic UK banks and building societies to prepare for a solvent exit. The new rules require all firms in scope to prepare for an orderly solvent exit as...more
In our annual financial services Horizon Scanning webinar, our regulatory team provided an overview of upcoming and expected changes for UK firms.
Partners from our UK team considered regulatory updates on the horizon for...more
This paper discusses the way forward for the UK as it moves out of the legislative orbit of the EU and commences the wider regulatory reform programme proposed by the UK government.
...more
The FCA published its final rules on the Consumer Duty in a Policy Statement on 27 July 2022 (PS22/9) and firms now have until 31 July 2023 to fully implement such rules for new and existing products or services and until 31...more
The FCA published its final rules on the Consumer Duty in a Policy Statement on 27 July 2022 (PS22/9) and firms now have until 31 July 2023 to fully implement such rules for new and existing products or services and until 31...more
The FCA has finalised its new proposed consumer duty regime for UK firms, with a start date of July 2023 (subject to transitional provisions). The first milestone in terms of a relevant firm’s implementation project is 31...more
On 22 September, just two months after the Financial Services and Markets Bill (FSM Bill) was introduced to Parliament, the government introduced the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill (the Brexit Freedoms Bill). ...more
The Financial Services and Markets Bill establishes a new framework for the Bank of England’s regulation of Financial Market Infrastructure (FMI) and in particular central counterparties (CCPs) and central securities...more
The Financial Services and Markets Bill creates a Designated Activities Regime that will impact both authorised and unregulated firms. The Designated Activities Regime is intended to maintain the purview of the Financial...more
This briefing is one in a series on the Financial Services and Markets Bill (FSMB). In this briefing we discuss the revocation of onshored EU law contained in the FSMB, focusing on some questions of relevance to firms.
...more
How A&O Consulting can help you meet the challenge of the wider ranging set of requirements and regulatory expectations for the Consumer Duty....more
On 20 July 2022, just before the UK Parliament’s summer recess, the long awaited Financial Services and Markets Bill (FSM Bill) was introduced to Parliament....more
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has gained a new power to vary or cancel regulatory permissions held by firms that are not using them, via a faster process. The power reflects the FCA’s intention to become a more...more
Operational resilience is a priority for the regulators of financial services in the UK. It is prominent in both the Prudential Regulation Authority’s (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) business plans....more
The UK Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) latest consultation and feedback on the proposed Consumer Duty engages with some of the sticking points as well as providing draft rules and guidance. ...more