RateSetter has added additional detail to its annual performance statistics to provide greater transparency; the additional details provide data on loan originations by lending type with a breakdown of consumer and commercial loans; for commercial lending the firm will now also disclose loans to property developers, small and medium size enterprises, and wholesale lenders; the changes were prompted by a request from the Financial Conduct Authority for greater disclosure on wholesale lending across the industry; the update from RateSetter also included a report on a defaulted loan that RateSetter has taken onto its balance sheet to protect investors. Source
A new report has documented the surge in UK banks advertising risk and compliance roles; as they gear up for new regulation in 2022.
FT Alphaville takes a close look at some of the findings from the Financial Conduct Authority report on their regulatory sandbox; the positives include weeding out the more risky ideas and that 41 of 146 applicants were able to make it through the testing phase; the negatives include distributed ledger technology that shows some of the testing is on too small a scale to really understand whether or not it would actually work. Source.
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority released a report on algorithmic trading to help set boundaries around the market; the report lays out best practices and presents guidance on how firms can implement AI in trading; the FCA does voice concerns at too much automation and talks about human intervention to avoid big issues occurring; the report was written to help trading firms comply with the Second Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II). Source.
With the heightened cost of living battering UK PSPs, many consider Open banking to be the silver bullet, but with adoption at only 10% of the population, innovation is needed.
At Fintech Nexus' Merge 2022 event, the future of DeFi and DAOs was discussed. Lex Sokolin believes it is time for a new economy to be born.
There are a seemingly endless amount of blockchains, with the latest coming from The Ant Group as they released AntChain...
After receiving FCA authorization earlier this month, ThinCats provides some insight on plans for its IFISA; Stewart Cazier, head of retail for ThinCats, says the company is planning for a 2017 release of its IFISA; Cazier also says the firm is planning a staggered rollout with registered investors receiving first priority. Source
UK online marketplace lender ThinCats is the latest P2P platform to receive full authorization from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA); the firm is a secured business lender and says it has a number of developments in progress including the launch of an IFISA; in comments regarding the authorization, John Mould, CEO of ThinCats, said: "We are delighted to have been granted FCA authorization, proving the dedication of our team and processes. We are very happy that more and more alternative finance providers are now being authorized, as it ultimately proves that the industry deserves the trust and confidence of investors, advisors and SME borrowers alike." Source
ThinCats recently shared that an agreement with four institutional investors allows it to lend £700 million to small businesses; the...