For decades, regulatory reporting has been defined by templates: thousands of fields to be completed and resubmitted every time a rule or taxonomy changed. That world is now shifting. Regulators in multiple jurisdictions are adopting Granular Data Reporting (GDR) – a model where firms submit transaction- or element-level data once, and supervisors generate the necessary outputs themselves. The implications are profound: fewer duplicative forms, lower change costs, and a transformation of reporting into a continuous, data-driven process.
The rationale for GDR is straightforward. Templates are inflexible and expensive to maintain, especially when supervisory demands shift rapidly. They also force firms to reconcile the same data multiple times across different returns, multiplying operational burden. Supervisors, meanwhile, receive aggregates that mask detail and reduce their ability to analyse systemic risks.Global policy groups such as the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and Financial Stability Board (FSB) have argued that granular submissions can address both problems: regulators get richer data, and firms avoid the churn of endlessly redesigning forms. The concept is now crystallising in concrete initiatives across Asia, Europe, and beyond.
Asia-Pacific Leads the Way
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) was one of the earliest to move. Starting in 2019, it piloted transaction-level loan reporting under its Granular Data Reporting (GDR) initiative. By 2023, HKMA was already publishing analytics based on the granular dataset, demonstrating how supervisors can conduct cross-bank insights without asking firms to re-key information into multiple templates.
Singapore has gone even further. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) launched its Data Collection Gateway (DCG), a fully API-based platform. Instead of uploading static forms, banks connect directly to DCG, which uses machine-readable rules to validate thousands of unique data points. MAS has presented this as a breakthrough in reducing duplication and improving data quality.
Australia’s APRA Connect is another live example. APRA replaced its legacy D2A system with a modern, cloud-based platform that supports granular data submission and validation. Since 2021, APRA has been progressively expanding Connect’s scope, applying “open table” designs that allow institutions to submit transaction- or instrument-level data without being constrained by rigid form layouts.These cases show that the GDR model is no longer theoretical. In parts of Asia-Pacific, it is already the norm.
Europe’s Integrated Vision
The European Central Bank (ECB) has chosen a longer trajectory but with equally ambitious aims. Its Integrated Reporting Framework (IReF) builds on earlier granular collections such as AnaCredit (loan-by-loan) and security-by-security holdings. By 2029, IReF is expected to replace a wide array of statistical templates with a single granular layer, underpinned by stable data dictionaries and global identifiers such as ISIN, LEI, and UPI.
IReF illustrates the scale of coordination required in large jurisdictions: a decade-long design and parallel-running phase before legacy forms can finally be retired. But the direction is unmistakable – towards “collect once, use many times.”
The UK’s Transforming Data Collection Programme
The UK is also pursuing a template-lite future through the Transforming Data Collection (TDC) programme run by the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority. At the heart of TDC is a simple idea: collect data at a sufficiently granular level once, then generate multiple statistical views internally.
Pilot projects under Digital Regulatory Reporting have tested how machine-readable rules and API submissions can replace traditional form-filling. While the UK’s progress is incremental compared with Asia-Pacific, it complements the European model and demonstrates convergence on a global philosophy: granular data first, templates second.
RegTech GDR Leaders
Regnology (formed from the merger of BearingPoint RegTech and Vizor) has made GDR central to its strategy. The firm publicly claims to support around 100 regulators worldwide and has concrete case studies to point to. In 2019, Vizor was selected by APRA to deliver the new APRA Connect platform. Regnology was chosen in 2020, following a public tender process, by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to design, install, test, and commission the new Data Collection Gateway (DCG) as part of MAS’s revised MAS 610 reporting regime. The DCG pilot ran starting April 2020, ahead of mandatory reporting beginning in January 2021.
In October 2024, the company launched its Granular Data (RGD) product, described as a “granular-by-design” model to underpin both regulatory and firm-side reporting. In July 2025, Regnology signed a definitive agreement to acquire Wolters Kluwer’s Finance, Risk & Regulatory Reporting (FRR/OneSumX) unit; closing is expected in fall 2025, subject to approvals.
Suade Lab’s FIRE data model is promoted as a common, regulator-neutral format for granular reporting. Suade has worked with SWIFT and engaged with UK pilots for the Bank of England’s TDC.
A Transformational Shift for Regulatory Data Management
For capital markets and treasury teams, the shift to granular data reporting is more than a compliance exercise, it’s a data transformation project. Firms will need to build unified, regulator-neutral data hubs, capture identifiers like LEI and ISIN at trade inception, and run API-based submission pipelines with schema-driven validation and rules as code.
While the upfront investment is significant, the long-term economics are compelling. Regulatory reporting costs fall when reporting logic is transformed from template redesigns to rule updates. Reconciliation breaks shrink when identifiers are captured at source. And the same granular data can be repurposed internally for liquidity management, collateral optimisation, stress testing, and other strategic needs.Granular Data Reporting is more than an emerging concept. It is already a live reality in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Australia. In Europe, it has become a multi-year programme. And in the UK, it is taking shape as an evolving framework.
For international firms, the message is clear. GDR is already here and regulators are committed. Those who adapt early will not only meet supervisory demands but also unlock efficiencies and insights that pay dividends across the business.
If you’re eager to hear from regulators, solution providers, and industry leaders driving the granular-data future, be sure to attend A-Team Group’s RegTech Summit London (16 October 2025). Look out for the session on “Best practices for streamlined and agile regulatory reporting,” where data-first architectures, API-driven pipelines, and strategic compliance modernization are front and centre.
For North America, RegTech Summit New York (20 November 2025) offers a session with practical insights into “Your strategic roadmap for RegTech implementation,” as well as a panel on “Best practices for streamlined and agile regulatory reporting” – both highly relevant for teams preparing for the granular data transformation.
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