UK scores top marks in anti-money laundering review December 7, 2018 The UK’s finance sector scored top marks in a review by a global anti-money laundering watchdog published today. However, due to its status as the largest financial services provider in the world, it still faces a “significant risk” of money laundering, the Paris-headquartered Financial Action Task Force said. While Britain has a “robust” regime to [...]
City watchdog proposes clampdown on high risk spread betting instruments December 7, 2018 City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has today proposed a clampdown on the sale of certain risky financial instruments to retail customers, in a move that could hit the already struggling spreadbetting sector hard. The FCA proposed a ban on the sale, marketing and distribution of binary options to retail customers and a restriction [...]
City watchdog taken to court over failure to act in Royal Bank of Scotland GRG scandal December 5, 2018 A Scottish businessman is taking City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to court over its role in the investigation into the Royal Bank of Scotland’s restructuring unit. According to court documents, frequent RBS critic Neil Mitchell has filed an application for a judicial review of the FCA’s decision not to sanction anyone from RBS’s [...]
Brexit mess makes Britain ‘hot heads’ of Europe, says City’s policy boss December 4, 2018 Britain’s mishandling of Brexit has made it the new “hot heads” of Europe and damaged its financial services industry, according the Canada’s policy boss. Catherine McGuinness said the uncertainty surrounding Brexit has damaged the country’s reputation and will take time to rebuild. “We do travel the world quite extensively and I do [...]
Zopa to launch digital banking service, becoming latest group to take the fight to traditional high street banks December 4, 2018 Peer-to-peer lender Zopa is to follow through on continued hints that it would launch a bank, this morning announcing that it had acquired a license to do so. The company said it will roll out a range of new banking products next year, including fixed term savings accounts, credit cards and a money management app, [...]
The City is the goose that lays the golden eggs December 3, 2018 The Financial Conduct Authority has taken its boldest step yet into the debate about banks' Brexit contingency plans. In a letter to lenders the City watchdog warned that it will not accept “steps being taken which could expose clients or markets to unacceptable risks.” Specifically, the FCA warns that they will intervene if they suspect [...]
Regulator the Financial Conduct Authority warns banks about moving business away from the UK because of Brexit December 3, 2018 Regulator the Financial Conduct Authority has written to banks warning them about moving business away from the UK because of Brexit. Banks have been opening European subsidiaries and moving staff to locations that will remain inside the EU post-Brexit such as Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Dublin to ensure they are able to service customers after the UK [...]
Crossrail chairman Terry Morgan ‘in no doubt’ that Sadiq Khan was told about project delay in July December 3, 2018 The soon-to-be sacked HS2 chairman Terry Morgan has insisted he told Sadiq Khan that the £15.4bn Elizabeth Line was not going to open on time at least a month before the London mayor said he knew about the delay. Morgan, who has led the Crossrail project for a decade, told the BBC that he was in "absolutely no [...]
Tech outages at financial firms double as watchdog warns of data breach risk November 27, 2018 IT failures at financial institutions have more than doubled in the last year, the Financial Conduct Authority has revealed, as firms fight to update their legacy technology to keep apace with fintech startups. In the 12 months to October, the UK's financial firms reported a 138 per cent increase in technology outages to the FCA, as [...]
Profit leaps at guarantor loans provider Amigo following its London float earlier this year November 27, 2018 Sub prime lender Amigo posted a 40 per cent jump in adjusted profit after tax today in its first results since its London flotation in June. Shares were down 1.15 per cent this morning at 262p, which also marked a dip on their original price of 275p. Revenue grew 40 per cent to £130.1m in [...]
