FinTech Global FS Regulatory Round-up - w/e 1 November 2024

ICYMI

• 2024 Global Bank Review - Adaptation: Change is the only constant

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Global

BIS report: Project Mandala - Streamlining cross-border transaction compliance

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and its central bank partners have announced that they have successfully demonstrated with Project Mandala that regulatory compliance can be embedded in cross-border transaction protocols. A compliance-by-design decentralised system was developed that could help streamline cross-border payments by embedding regulatory compliance within a network of financial institutions (FIs) and central banks. This decentralised architecture integrates three core components: a peer-to-peer messaging system, a rules engine and a proof engine.

The project, which has now reached proof of concept stage, aligns with the G20 priority actions for enhancing cross-border payments, as it has the potential to reduce costs and increase transaction speed, while preserving regulatory compliance. [28 Oct 2024] #Payments #DeFi

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UK

FCA: CrowdStrike outage – lessons for operational resilience

The FCA has published a new webpage on the Crowdstrike outage, with key lessons drawn from how firms responded to the outage and their preparedness to respond to future incidents. The FCA also sets out the next steps for firms based on its observations.

The FCA reminds firms in scope of Policy Statement PS21/3: Building operational resilience (PS21/3) that, by March 2025, they must make sure they can deliver important business services in severe but plausible scenarios, like the CrowdStrike outage, to help minimise the impact on consumers and markets. [31 Oct 2024 #OpRes #Crowdstrike

BoE Deputy Governor discusses potential impact of AI on financial stability

The Bank of England (BoE) has published a speech by Sarah Breeden, Deputy Governor, Financial Stability, delivered at the HKMA-Bank for International Settlements (BIS) joint conference on opportunities and challenges of emerging technologies in the financial ecosystem. Ms Breeden discussed the potential benefits of AI for productivity and growth in the financial sector and the rest of the economy, while emphasising the need for regulators to implement policy frameworks that are designed to manage risks to financial stability. In particular, Ms Breeden highlighted two key issues of importance to the regulators:

• At a microprudential level, central banks and financial regulators should continue to assure themselves that technology-agnostic regulatory frameworks are sufficient to mitigate the financial stability risks from AI, as models become more powerful and adoption increases. There needs to be a focus on ensuring that managers of financial firms are able to understand and manage what their AI models are doing as they evolve autonomously.
• Regulators need to be 'alive to the possible need for macroprudential interventions' to support the stability of the financial system as a whole. Regulatory perimeters need to be kept under review, should the financial system become more dependent on shared AI technology and infrastructure systems. Additionally, stress testing frameworks could usefully evolve in time to assess whether AI models used ‘in the front line’ of financial firms’ businesses could interact with each other in ways that are hard to predict ex ante – for example, when used for trading, could there be sophisticated forms of manipulation or more crowded trades in normal times that exacerbate market volatility in stress?

In her concluding remarks, Ms Breeden noted that, while not jumping to knee-jerk policy responses, regulators need to keep under review whether microprudential and macroprudential policies remain sufficient to maintain financial stability. [31 Oct 2024] #AI

Autumn Budget announcements

A number of policy papers have been published by the Government alongside the Autumn Budget, including:

• The consultation outcome for the Cryptoasset Reporting Framework and Common Reporting Standard and a new consultation on a draft of The Cryptoasset Service Providers (Due Diligence and Reporting Requirements) Regulations 2025; feedback is requested by 10 January 2025.
• A policy paper setting out the findings from the second post-implementation review of the Commercial Credit Data Sharing (CCDS) scheme as required by the Small and Medium Sized Business (Finance Platform) Regulations 2015.

The Chancellor will set out her vision for the financial services sector in her Mansion House speech, building on new remit letters to the financial services regulators; the speech is expected to be delivered on 14 November 2024. [30 Oct 2024] #Crypto #Data

BoE Governor discusses the future of money and payments

The BoE has published a speech by its Governor Andrew Bailey in which he emphasised the need to modernise payment systems, particularly cross-border and wholesale payments, by harnessing digital technology. He also talked about the implications of harnessing digital technology from an economic and financial perspective, as well as the nature and role of money. Additionally, the Governor discussed the roles of central bank and commercial bank money, the importance of innovation, and the potential for a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) if innovation in commercial banks does not happen. [28 Oct 2024] #Payments #CBDC

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Australia

ASIC warns governance gap could emerge in first report on AI adoption by licensees

ASIC is urging financial services and credit licensees to ensure their governance practices keep pace with their accelerating adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). ASIC noted that this comes as its first state of the market review of the use and adoption of AI by 23 licensees found there was potential for governance to lag AI adoption, despite current AI use being relatively cautious (see REP 798 Beware the gap: Governance arrangements in the face of AI innovation). ASIC Chair Joe Longo said making sure governance frameworks are updated for the planned use of AI is crucial to licensees meeting future challenges posed by the technology. ASIC’s findings revealed nearly half of licensees did not have policies in place that considered consumer fairness or bias, and even fewer had policies governing the disclosure of AI use to consumers.

Mr Longo said AI could bring significant benefits, but without governance processes keeping pace, significant risks could emerge; he observed: 'without appropriate governance, we risk seeing misinformation, unintended discrimination or bias, manipulation of consumer sentiment and data security and privacy failures, all of which has the potential to cause consumer harm and damage to market confidence'. Mr Longo also said that licensees must consider their existing obligations and duties when it comes to the deployment of AI and avoid simply waiting for AI laws and regulations to be introduced. 'Existing consumer protection provisions, director duties and licensee obligations put the onus on institutions to ensure they have appropriate governance frameworks and compliance measures in place to deal with the use of new technologies,' commented the ASIC Chair, adding, 'this includes proper and ongoing due diligence to mitigate third-party AI supplier risk'.

Understanding and responding to the use of AI by financial firms is a key focus for ASIC, as set out in its latest Corporate Plan. ASIC will continue to monitor how licensees use AI as it has the potential to significantly impact not just consumer outcomes, but the safety and integrity of the financial system. Where there is misconduct, ASIC will take enforcement action if appropriate and where necessary. [29 Oct 2024] #AI

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Hong Kong

Insurance Authority Chief Executive Officer shares regulatory insights at the Hong Kong FinTech Week 2024

The Insurance Authority has co-hosted the InsurTech Forum with InvestHK on Day 2 of the Hong Kong FinTech Week 2024, to gather industry leaders and technology experts for insightful dialogue.

The Chief Executive Office of the Insurance Authority, Mr Clement Cheung, delivered a keynote presentation where he highlighted the importance of addressing climate change and cybersecurity threats.  He also discussed (among other things):

• Efforts to foster an ecosystem for insurance-linked securities;

• Introduction of the Cyber Resilience Assessment Framework (involving inherent risk assessment, maturity assessment and remediation plan) under the Guideline on Cybersecurity, with the amended guideline targeted for launch in January 2025; and

• The commission of a survey on artificial intelligence (AI) adoption in the insurance sector. 

Mr Cheung emphasised that although Al is a powerful tool capable of producing positive results in client acquisition, policy underwriting, customer service, claims settlement and fraud detection, it must be complemented by human oversight.  The Insurance Authority's immediate priority is to put in place a robust but flexible regulatory framework to spur the fair, transparent and ethical use of AI.

The InsurTech Forum featured panel discussions on topics including AI, data analytics, and the next generation of innovation.  [29 Oct 2024] #Cyber #AI #InsurTech

Government issues policy statement on responsible application of AI in financial market

The Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau has issued a policy statement to set out the Government's policy stance and approach towards the responsible application of artificial intelligence (AI) in the financial market.

The policy statement highlights:

• The Government's 'dual-track' approach to promote development and address potential challenges at the same time; 

• Current opportunities and use cases for AI;

• The types of risks associated with the use of AI and the corresponding measures to mitigate such risks (financial institutions should formulate an AI governance strategy, and adopt a risk-based approach in the procurement, use and management of AI systems, with human oversight to mitigate the potential risks); and

• The way forward for the Government and the financial regulators.

Some of the upcoming steps to be taken by the financial regulators include the following (among others):

• The HKMA will continue to run the Generative AI Sandbox launched in Aug 2024 (see our previous update);

• The HKMA will publish an updated study on 'Capacity Building for Future Banking' in 2025 to identify skills gaps in the banking industry for the following five years (2026 - 2030);

• The SFC will issue a circular to licensed corporations within November 2024 to remind them of the existing rules and regulations, as well as the opportunities and risks associated with generative AI;

• The SFC is participating in the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)'s Fintech Task Force AI Working Group and will keep in view any findings or recommendations from the IOSCO to consider whether further regulatory guidance to SFC-licensed firms is necessary;

• The Insurance Authority is enhancing its Guideline on Cybersecurity by developing a Cyber Resilience Assessment Framework specific for the insurance sector (according to a recent speech by the Insurance Authority's Chairman, Mr Stephen Yiu, the updated guideline will be published shortly and will come into effect in Jan 2025); and

• The Insurance Authority will conduct a fintech survey to evaluate current technology adoption trends in the insurance sector, focusing on AI and related cybersecurity measures.  [28 Oct 2024] #AI

HKMA announces initiatives at Fintech Week 2024 to spearhead journey of fintech development in Hong Kong

The Hong Kong FinTech Week 2024, co-organised by the HKMA and InvestHK, commenced on 28 October 2024 with an opening keynote from the Chief Executive of the HKMA, Mr Eddie Yue. 

The HKMA announced various initiatives to spearhead the journey of fintech development in Hong Kong, including the following:

Accelerating asset tokenisation

• The HKMA is advancing financial market infrastructure innovation with Project Ensemble (see our previous update).  The HKMA has completed the initial phase of six tokenisation use cases across four main themes under Project Ensemble and will publish a report detailing the results of the experimentation in 2025.  The architecture community has also added three new members and four new participants will begin experimenting with the Ensemble Sandbox on fixed income and investment funds use cases.

• The HKMA is taking Project Evergreen to the next phase by introducing measures to promote wider adoption of tokenisation in capital markets, including the Digital Bond Grant Scheme, details of which will be announced shortly.  The HKMA has also launched EvergreenHub, a knowledge repository for digital bond transactions.

Breaking down boundaries for payment

• The HKMA is working closely with the People’s Bank of China to establish a cross-boundary linkage between Hong Kong’s Faster Payment System and the Mainland’s Internet Banking Payment System, which will support 24/7, instant, small-value, cross-boundary remittances.  A pilot launch is expected to take place tentatively in mid-2025.

Unlocking data potential

• To extend the reach of the Commercial Data Interchange, the HKMA is exploring a connection with the Land Registry to enhance mortgage and loan assessments for individuals and corporates in phases from 2025.  The HKMA is also exploring pilots on cross-boundary credit referencing with Mainland credit reference platforms, and upgrading the Commercial Credit Reference Agency 2.0, to enhance the small-and-medium sized enterprise lending journey.

• The HKMA is actively participating in Project Aperta, a cross-jurisdictional collaboration on open finance application programming interfaces network, to reduce frictions and costs in global finance. 

Empowering banks to go fintech

• The HKMA has launched Fintech Connect, a cross-sectoral sourcing platform connecting financial institutions with fintech solution providers.  The platform is also being enhanced by Qianhai-based fintech solution providers.

• The HKMA will continue to work with the ecosystem stakeholders to organise additional FiNETech sessions in the coming months to further advance the adoption of greentech and distributed ledger technology.

• The HKMA is also introducing a sector-wide uplift programme to enhance banks’ monitoring of complex money laundering cases and geopolitical risks through the use of artificial intelligence, supported by a joint event with Cyberport.  [28 Oct 2024] #Payments #Data #Tokenisation #AI #GreenTech

HKMA Deputy Chief Executive shares thoughts on role of Hong Kong in GBA fintech ecosystem and announces launch of Fintech Connect

Mr Arthur Yuen, Deputy Chief Executive of the HKMA, has made remarks at Hong Kong FinTech Week 2024 regarding the role of Hong Kong in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) fintech ecosystem.

The key developments discussed by Mr Yuen include the following (among others):

• The HKMA is launching the Fintech Connect, a new cross-sectoral matching platform that enables financial institutions to discover innovative solutions and partner with solution providers via more direct networking and precise matching.  In collaboration with the Qianhai Authority, the HKMA has onboarded fintech firms in the Qianhai region to the Fintech Connect platform to further promote fintech development. Through the platform, financial institutions from Hong Kong are better equipped with access to the innovation from the Qianhai region, and Qianhai Fintech firms are afforded greater opportunities to access and enter international markets.
• The GBA Fintech Pilot Trial Facility, launched in 2022, has enabled banks and fintech solution providers to obtain early supervisory feedback and user opinions, expedite the launch of fintech products, and ultimately reduce development costs.  The HKMA is encouraged to see successful production roll-out of cross border fintech solutions following these trials.
• The first phase of pilot trials on the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Cross-boundary Data Validation Platform has been conducted, covering cross-boundary validation of credit reference reports and account opening documents for corporate customers.  The HKMA encourages banks to utilise the platform to discover innovative use cases and conduct pilot trials involving cross-border data validation through the HKMA’s Fintech Supervisory Sandbox.
• More fintech-related initiatives will be undertaken in the future, such as training sessions and new editions of the FiNETech series, further exploring the cross-border fintech and financial cooperation between not only Hong Kong and Qianhai, but also other cities in the GBA.  [28 Oct 2024] #FintechConnect #Sandbox

SFC announces initiatives at Fintech Week 2024 to foster vibrant fintech ecosystem in Hong Kong

In a keynote address at Hong Kong Fintech Week 2024, Dr Eric Yip, the SFC's Executive Director of Intermediaries, detailed initiatives to further develop and scale up Hong Kong’s virtual asset market.

Swift licensing process for virtual asset trading platforms (VATPs)

• The SFC is implementing a swift licence approval process for handling deemed-to-be-licensed VATP applicants (see our previous update), building upon its existing regulatory tools of risk-based on-site inspections alongside direct dialogue with the applicants’ senior management and controllers, rather than using a document-based vetting process.  

• The SFC expects the first batch of formal licences to be granted to deemed-to-be-licensed VATP applicants by the end of 2024.

VATP consultative panel

• To support licensed VATPs’ development of sustainable business models, the SFC is establishing an official consultative panel for all licensed VATPs with representatives from each licensee to ensure that their perspectives are taken into account in the SFC's policymaking. 

• The consultative panel is expected to be launched in early 2025.  Together with feedback from other stakeholders, the panel’s deliberation will form the foundation of the SFC's forthcoming white paper on regulatory priorities for the virtual asset (VA) industry. 

Further regulatory building blocks relating to VAs

• As part of its commitment to enable the sustainable and responsible development of the virtual asset industry, the SFC is working with the Government and other regulatory bodies to develop proposals for regulating the provision of VA trading services, and the provision of VA custody services.

Tokenisation, Project Ensemble and stablecoins

• The SFC is a core member of the Architecture Community of HKMA's Project Ensemble, co-leading tokenisation initiatives for the asset management industry (see our previous update).  Project Ensemble plays a crucial role in establishing the necessary infrastructure for Hong Kong’s tokenisation ecosystem, ultimately setting industry standards for tokenised asset settlement (see our previous update).

• In light of the upcoming implementation of the fiat-referenced stablecoin regime, the SFC expects to see regulated stablecoins available for public usage in as early as 2025. 

Dr Yip indicated that the SFC will continue to enhance its investor protection efforts through proactive monitoring systems and public alerts while stepping up its collaboration with other agencies.  [28 Oct 2024] #VATP #Tokenisation #Crypto

Project Ensemble Sandbox participant successfully completes simulation of dealing and trading process of tokenised money market fund using TDs

The SFC has announced that a financial institution participating in the Project Ensemble Sandbox has successfully completed a first-of-its-kind simulation of the dealing and trading process of a tokenised money market fund using tokenised deposits (TDs) within the sandbox environment.

Following the launch of the Project Ensemble Sandbox in August 2024 (see our previous update), the SFC has been working closely with HKMA in which the SFC provides regulatory guidance to sandbox participants to support their experimentation on tokenisation use cases under different themes.  The SFC has also been co-leading with the HKMA to advance the tokenisation initiatives within the asset management sector.

The financial institution (a local bank) has partnered with its own asset management arm and trustee business, and successfully completed in the sandbox a simulation of delivery-versus-payment settlement of a tokenised money market fund using TDs.  The simulation covered subscription, redemption and trading of the tokenised fund unit for its institutional clients, as well as cross-bank settlement of the tokenised fund unit using TDs.  This pilot test would pave the way for further exploring atomic settlement of tokenised funds and money on a 24/7 basis in real-world business scenario, which could increase operational efficiency, reduce costs and appeal to international investors across various time zones.

The SFC remains committed to building the tokenisation ecosystem in Hong Kong and working with the HKMA and sandbox participants to further develop use cases.  It will continue to engage asset managers on their product tokenisation initiatives.  [28 Oct 2024] #Sandbox #Tokenisation

HKEX to launch Virtual Asset Index Series on 15 November 2024

The HKEX has announced the launch of the HKEX Virtual Asset Index Series, which will go live on 15 November 2024.  The launch is part of HKEX's push to explore adjacencies, supporting Hong Kong's fintech development whilst providing investors with essential benchmarking tools and solutions in a constantly evolving market landscape.

The index series, which will be the first EU Benchmarks Regulation-compliant virtual asset index series developed in Hong Kong, will be administered and calculated by CCData, a UK-registered benchmark administrator and virtual asset data and index provider. 

The index series will provide investors with transparent and reliable benchmarks for Bitcoin and Ether pricing in the Asian time zone.  It seeks to provide a single reference price for virtual assets, where these assets are often traded at different prices across global exchanges.

The index series will include the reference index as well as the reference rate for Bitcoin and Ether.  The reference index is a 24-hour volume weighted reference spot price of Bitcoin or Ether, using prices aggregated from top-rated virtual asset exchanges, calculated in real-time and denominated in USD.  The reference rate is designed for the settlement of financial products, calculated daily at 4:00 pm Hong Kong time.

Further details on the design and calculation methodology of the index series will be announced in due course.  [28 Oct 2024] #VirtualAsset #Crypto

HKMA partners with central banks of Thailand and Brazil on cross-border tokenisation initiatives

The HKMA has announced its collaboration with the central banks of Thailand and Brazil on cross-border tokenisation initiatives, following earlier collaborations.

Bank of Thailand (BOT):

• The collaboration involves exploring cross-border tokenisation use cases under Project Ensemble and Project San.

• The HKMA and the BOT will explore payment versus payment (PvP) and delivery versus payment (DvP) tokenisation use cases, including trade payments and carbon credits.  A key aspect of this collaboration will be a proof of concept development, exploring the interoperability of new distributed ledger technology integrated financial market infrastructures.  In the proof of concept development, the HKMA and the BOT will test a link between infrastructures under Project Ensemble and the BOT’s Project San.  

Banco Central do Brasil (BCB):

• The collaboration involves conducting cross-border tokenisation experiments under Project Ensemble and Drex pilot programme.

• The HKMA and the BCB will link their experimental central bank digital currency infrastructures, namely the Ensemble Sandbox (launched in August 2024 – see our previous update) and the Drex pilot platform, to explore cross-border PvP and DvP settlement use cases in areas such as trade finance and carbon credits.  [28 Oct 2024] #Tokenisation

 

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Singapore

MAS: Global Finance & Technology Network

MAS has announced the establishment of the Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN) aimed at further strengthening Singapore as a global fintech hub and enhancing global connectivity for impactful innovation in financial services.

The GFTN will work with MAS to advance industry and policy dialogues in payments, asset tokenisation, artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum. It will also support MAS’ efforts to develop and grow a vibrant fintech ecosystem and scale the Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF).  [30 Oct 2024] #Payments #Tokenisation #AI #Quantum

MAS: BIS Project Mandala: Streamlining cross-border transaction compliance

MAS has reported that the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and its central bank partners have successfully demonstrated with Project Mandala that regulatory compliance can be embedded in cross-border transaction protocols. A compliance-by-design decentralised system was developed that could help streamline cross-border payments by embedding regulatory compliance within a network of financial institutions (FIs) and central banks. This decentralised architecture integrates three core components: a peer-to-peer messaging system, a rules engine and a proof engine.

The project, which has now reached proof of concept stage, aligns with the G20 priority actions for enhancing cross-border payments, as it has the potential to reduce costs and increase transaction speed, while preserving regulatory compliance.

This experimental project is a collaboration with the BIS Innovation Hub Singapore Centre, the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Bank of Korea, and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM).  [28 Oct 2024] #Payments #DeFi

MAS: The 2024 Global FinTech Hackcelerator and FinTech Excellence Awards finalists

MAS has announced the 42 finalists for the 2024 Global FinTech Hackcelerator and the Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF) FinTech Excellence Awards. The winners will be revealed at the SFF FinTech Excellence Awards 2024 dinner on 7 November 2024.  [28 Oct 2024] #Hackathon

 

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Malaysia

BNM announces proof-of-concept stage for Project Mandala

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has announced that Project Mandala, a collaboration with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub Singapore Centre, the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Bank of Korea, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore, has reached proof of concept stage.

The 'Mandala' system aims to increase the speed and efficiency of cross-border transactions by automating compliance procedures, enhancing transparency of country-specific policies and providing real-time reporting and monitoring for regulators and supervisors.

The project has proved its technical feasibility through two primary use cases:

• cross-border lending between Singapore and Malaysia – Mandala streamlined the compliance processes for capital flow management measures (CFM) and sanctions screening for financial institutions and facilitated real-time compliance monitoring for central banks; and
• cross-border financing for capital investments between South Korea and Australia –Mandala automated the sanctions screening and CFM reporting requirements for an unlisted securities transaction.

Additionally, Mandala successfully integrates with both nascent digital asset settlement systems, such as a wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC), and traditional payment messaging systems, such as Swift. This dual integration ensures the Mandala system’s versatility and modularity in supporting both future digital asset ecosystems and existing financial infrastructures. For digital assets, Mandala deployed programmable compliance that can be embedded into smart contracts. [28 Oct 2024] #Payments #wCBDC #DeFi

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Thailand

BOT collaborates with HKMA to explore cross-border tokenisation

The Bank of Thailand (BOT) has announced a collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) to explore cross-border tokenisation use cases under Project San and Project Ensemble. Building on a collaboration that began in 2019, the two central banks will explore Payment versus Payment (PvP) and Delivery versus Payment (DvP) tokenisation use cases, including trade payments and carbon credits.  A key aspect of this collaboration will be a proof-of-concept development, exploring the interoperability of new distributed ledger technology integrated financial market infrastructures (DLT FMIs).  [29 Oct 2024] #Payments #Tokenisation

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Philippines

BSP champions digital transformation for data-driven policies at 35th NSM closing ceremony

During the 35th National Statistics Month (NSM) closing ceremony, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has emphasised the importance of leveraging on data and innovative tools to support evidence-based policies. In line with the theme, 'Advancing data and statistics through digital transformation: a road to an empowered nation', the BSP highlighted the need for a transformative mindset for the modern digitally empowered society. The BSP also noted that it is upgrading its systems and processes to produce quality data and provide relevant information that addresses the needs of its stakeholders. [29 Oct 2024] #Data

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Vietnam

SBV: Summary of Smart Banking 2024 conference

The State Bank of Vietnam has published a summary of the Smart Banking 2024 conference., where Deputy Governor Pham Tien Dzung discussed the digital future of the banking industry. Addressing the need for data and information security as the top concerns of the banking industry, the Deputy Governor encouraged participants to share their experiences, point out limitations, and propose appropriate and practical solutions to enhance information security, and ensure a safe and sustainable digital future for the banking industry. The Deputy Governor also requested the relevant authorities to actively engage with, and support, the SBV and commercial banks to ensure transparent operations, protect the legitimate rights and interests of customers, and enhance information safety and security solutions.

The representatives of several commercial banks also shared their experience in applying AI and data analytics in their banking operations, as well as the challenges that they are facing. [30 Oct 2024] #DigitalBanking

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US

CFPB: Credit union fined over botched rollout of new online banking system

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has announced action against a Florida state-chartered credit union following its "botched" rollout of a new online banking system. In May 2022, the credit union had transitioned to a new online banking platform that made it difficult for credit union members to perform basic banking functions for weeks, with some features unavailable for more than six months. Account holders incurred fees and costs as a result of these issues.

The CFPB has ordered the credit union, which is one of the largest in the country with over 980,000 members, to ensure that all consumers are made whole; it must also pay a $1.5m civil penalty to the CFPB’s victims relief fund.  [31 Oct 2024] #OnlineBanking

FINRA: Metaverse and the implications for the securities industry

FINRA has published the findings of research undertaken by staff from its Office of Financial Innovation (OFI), which is part of the Office of Regulatory, Economics and Market Analysis (REMA), into the opportunities and risks that the metaverse may present for the securities industry.

This report is set out as follows:

• Section I provides a brief overview of the metaverse, including market trends.
• Section II identifies and analyzes the potential applications for the metaverse that the securities industry is exploring.
• Section III addresses potential use cases, challenges and related factors associated with the metaverse.
• Section IV outlines potential regulatory considerations.  [24 Oct 2024] #MetaVerse