In case you missed it, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has made a call for input on how technology can make it easier for firms to meet regulatory reporting requirements and improve the quality of the information they provide.
The call for input outlines a proof of concept (POC) developed by the FCA and Bank of England during a two-week TechSprint late last year to examine how technology can make regulatory reporting more accurate, efficient and consistent. The POC demonstrates how regulatory reporting requirements could be made machine-readable and executable. This means firms could map reporting requirements directly to the data they hold, creating the potential for automated, straight-through processing of regulatory returns.
The TechSprint participants suggest this could, for example, improve the accuracy of data submissions and reduce their costs, allow changes to regulatory requirements to be implemented more quickly. They also note that a reduction in compliance costs could lower barriers to entry and promote competition.
The FCA call for input outlines how the POC was developed and asks for views on how the FCA can improve on it. It also seeks feedback on broader issues surrounding the role technology can play in regulatory reporting.
Christopher Woolard, executive director of strategy and competition at the FCA, says: “Technology is a powerful shaper of financial regulation, able to make compliance simpler and more efficient. Our TechSprints bring people from across the financial services world together to share their collective knowledge to solve common problems.’
The call for input closes on June 20, 2018. A feedback statement summarising the views received and proposed next steps will be published later in the summer.
