Fintech: City minister Andrew Griffith says UK must “raise our aspirations” in growth race
THE City minister Andrew Griffith has said it is time to raise the “aspirations” of the United Kingdom in order to create a more innovative, growing economy.
Griffith, a former Sky exec, writes in City PM today that the “stunning success of UK fintech, which supports tens of thousands of jobs,” can provide a roadmap for other service industries.
The Treasury minister was in the States last week drumming up interest in the UK’s tech scene.
Griffith says the success of open banking in particular serves as an example of disruptors, established players, government and regulators working together to deliver a growing industry.
“My task now is not just to lock in this progress – but to build on it to ensure the benefits of open banking technology and broader innovation are felt by as many people and businesses in the UK as possible,” he writes.
In a letter to the Financial Conduct Authority seen by City PM, 17 top firms and industry body Coadec said that while the UK’s progress on open banking was once “the envy of the the world”, its future was now “uncertain” due to a lack of direction from the body in charge of its roll-out, the Joint Regulation Oversight Committee (JROC).
Open banking was introduced by the Competition and Markets Authority in 2018 to free up data sharing between traditional big banks and smaller startups, with the aim of boosting competition and innovations in financial services.
The open banking regime moved into a new governance structure earlier this year under the JROC. The body published an update on open banking progress last year in which they outlined a vision for the regime and the design of an entity to oversee its roll-out.