The Bank of England and the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have given an update on their joint supervision of the country’s financial market infrastructure (FMI), noting that their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this regard “remain effective with appropriate coordination and no material duplication.”
The authorities stated this on Friday in their update on their MoU on the supervision of market infrastructure and payment systems in the country. They noted that the conclusion was reached based on their review of FMP providers.
According to the BOE, FMIs allow the clearing, settlement, and recording of financial transactions and also enable millions of transactions to take place each day. They include entities such as payment systems, central securities depositories and central counterparties.
The British central bank noted that these service providers “acknowledged the efforts made on co-operation particularly on LIBOR transition and operational resilience and the Bank and FCA remain committed to effective co-operation going forwards.”
FCA Seeks to Strengthen Regulatory Regime
Last month, the FCA started consulting with the public on ways to update and improve the country’s asset management regime. Asset managers in the United Kingdom oversee over £11 trillion in assets, making the country the second biggest asset management market after the United States.
The FCA noted that it will ensure that any modification to the country’s asset management laws tallies with global standards and promotes technological advancement and innovation.
"The UK has an opportunity to update and improve the UK regime for asset management. We want to hear from a wide range of voices about how we can enhance the existing standards, and what we should prioritise to bring the most benefits to consumers, firms and the wider global economy," Camille Blackburn, the Director of Wholesale Buy-Side at the FCA, explained.
In another development, the UK financial markets supervisor last month asked local and foreign cryptocurrency firms targeting UK consumers to be ready to comply with the country’s upcoming new financial promotions regime. The FCA warned them of "robust action" for promotional rule breaches. These measures will include takedowns of websites, public warnings, and enforcement action, the regulator noted.
