SFTR Legislation Enters Official Journal of the EU

The seven delegated regulations and three implementing regulations comprising Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR) level II legislation were published in the Official Journal of the EU on March 22, 2019, making the regime legally binding.

According to the International Securities Lending Association, the reporting obligations deadlines will be as follows: April 11, 2020, reporting obligation for credit institutions and investment firms as well as all third country regulated firms; July 11, 2020, reporting obligation for CSDs and CCPs; October 11, 2020, reporting obligation for all other financial counterparties; January 11, 2021, reporting obligation for all non-financial counterparties.

Fiorano Partners with Konsentus for PSD2 Compliance

Fiorano Software, a specialist in enterprise middleware, integration and API management, has added Third Party Provider (TPP) Identity & Regulatory checking services from Konsentus, a UK-based Regtech company providing live SaaS-based APIs to check TPP identity and regulatory status, to its ready-to-deploy PSD2 platform to provide enhanced support to institutions working towards PSD2 compliance.

Whilst the first major deadline passed on March 14, whereby institutions had to make their ASPSP interfaces available for external testing, the next major PSD2 deadline is September 14, when banks must demonstrate the effective application of all EBA technology mandates.

Union of Arab Banks Calls for Increased RegTech Investment

FinTech has been enthusiastically adopted by local banks but the Middle East region is lagging behind on Regtech investment, warned Wissam Fattouh, who is also Chairman of the MENA Financial Crime Compliance Group. Speaking at a MENA Regulatory Summit in March, Fattouh urged greater investment in regtech applications, without which he warned that firms would be more exposed to cyber security risks and financial crime.

Sanlam Asset Management Selects AQMetrics to Provide AIFMD Reporting

Sanlam Asset Management (Ireland) has selected AQMetrics to provide AIFMD Annex IV regulatory reporting for its funds. Sanlam will utilise AQMetrics software technology to automate Annex IV reporting, having deemed the AQMetrics platform the most scalable and robust technology best suited to fit the firm’s requirements as the regulatory landscape evolves. The announcement marks the start of a complete digital overhaul for the firm’s operations.

CellTrust SL2 Reports 1900% YOY Revenue Growth

US-based CellTrust Corporation, which provides enterprise mobile communications compliance solutions, on March 25 announced a 1900% growth in revenue for 2018 over 2017. “As the RegTech market rapidly expands around the world, CellTrust is meeting the technology and geographic mobility demands,” explained Sean Moshir, CellTrust’s Chairman and CEO. “The number of financial enterprises and countries our SL2 mobile compliance solution is being used in has grown significantly, as have revenue and market share.”

“We are on track to release the next version of our flagship CellTrust SL2 application mid-2019,” added Sean Moshir, Chairman and CEO.

Binance Partners with IdentityMind to Enhance Compliance

IdentityMind, a risk management and RegTech compliance platform offering KYC and AML service including real-time onboarding, transaction monitoring, and case management solution built for digital currency exchanges, in March announced a new partnership with Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume and users. As part of a joint mission to help raise the industry’s standard, Binance and IdentityMind will work together to improve existing data protection and compliance measures for Binance’s global operations.

Clausematch Opens Asia-Pacific HQ

London-based ClauseMatch, which provides a Software-as-a-Service solutions that automates compliance management for banks and financial institutions, is expanding into Asia Pacific with the launch of new headquarters based in Singapore. The firm has also teamed up with local platform RegPac Revolution to gain networking connectivity and traction in the region. Arathi Arul, VP for Business Development at ClauseMatch, will lead the roll-out of the company’s service offerings in Asia Pacific from Singapore.

Thasos Releases 2019 REIT Performance Update

Thasos, an alternative data firm that transforms real-time locations from mobile phones into actionable insights, has published its 2019 REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) Performance Update, providing insights into the state of US retail REITs. Using a new methodology, Thasos Trade Area, the study reports activities such as foot traffic at US malls. Greg Skibiski, founder and CEO of Thasos, says: “The granularity of our data provides insights never before available and will be critical in uncovering opportunities for investors.” The report follows Bloomberg’s addition of Thasos data to its Enterprise Access Point solution.

Singapore FinTech Association Forms Regtech Sub-Committee

After almost a year of gestation, the Singapore Fintech Association has formed a new RegTech Sub-Committee, with an official launch currently being planned for May 30, 2019. Its mission is to foster the RegTech ecosystem in the financial sector in Singapore through talent development, engagement with regulators, engagement with Industry, and nurturing the development of RegTech companies. The Sub-Committee is currently comprised of Chionh Chye Kit, CEO & Co-Founder of Cynopsis.co; Guy Shepphard, Head of Asia-Pacific Financial Crime at SWIFT; Rolf Haudenschild, Head of Regulatory & Risk Services at Ingenia Consultants; and Andrew Tan, Partner at Ignite Consulting.

Arab Bank Builds Mobile Trading App on Integral platform

Arab Bank (Switzerland) has deployed a trading app built on the Integral platform to expand its mobile trading services targeted at institutional and corporate customers. The bank aims to provide an end-to-end FX solution, having worked with Integral and its BankFX cloud-based platform since 2014 to provide a single dealer platform for clients.