Taming the DORA dragon

The EU’s Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) dragon is getting ready for flight in 150 days. Leave your castle walls in disrepair over the summer holidays at your peril. This regulation has taken a far deeper, broader and more prescriptive approach to derisking the ‘end to end’ Information Communication and Technology (ICT) risk than ever


At TSS 27 financial institutions agreed that there was an opportunity to scale trade surveillance controls by creating new ‘Digital Surveillance Rules’ (DSR). This meeting is to discuss the use cases, outcomes and key success factors to build on existing surveillance guidance to  conduct a CDM-based PoC.  Research has shown that standardized business events and data dictionaries can streamline the


At JWG’s annual conference, panellists agreed that the financial services sector has an opportunity to leverage its newly deployed common domain model to scale trade surveillance controls, making the system safer, less noisy more efficient by billions of dollars across the markets. Research has shown that standardized business events and data dictionaries can streamline the process for spotting suspicious trading activity


U.S. regulators have started to fine tier-one firms for failing to capture complete and accurate trade data in surveillance systems tracking market abuse. Trade data accuracy and completeness was a significant U.S. regulatory focus, said a senior UK market abuse compliance official speaking at a conference held under the Chatham House rule this month. JP


We are pleased to announce the first wave of confirmed firms, regulators and trade associations are participating in JWG’s 8th annual RegTech conference, ‘Getting real about RegTech 2024. Don’t miss this opportunity to join this premier global event which articulates the key challenges which RegTech can help overcome in 2024. Register here RegTech year 8 Regulators


JWG’s eighth annual conference will be the premier, global event for setting the 2024 RegTech agenda on 7 February in London. Join us to help shape the debate today. Register for 7 February 2024  About the JWG RegTech agenda Long recognised as the first, biggest and most professional public/private sector agenda debate, JWG is continuing


US Regulators fired a $555m shot across Wall Street’s bow last week by holding them accountable for their employees’  pervasive use of unauthorized communication methods, like private texts and in some cases WhatsApp. This is the second batch of ‘market moving’ fines in the US within a year , yet no other country has followed


On June 20, 2023, PJ Di Giammarino, CEO and founder of JWG and Matt Caine, Director of EMEA Financial Markets Communication Compliance at NICE held a discussion on ‘Navigating the Winding Regulatory Road of Communication Compliance’ with a group of Financial Services Compliance and IT experts at the NICE Interactions 2023 conference in London. During


The concept of having everyone on the same data page at lower cost and a holistic risk framework has always made sense, but the industry has lacked motivation to execute. With hefty fines being administered and increased regulatory scrutiny, firms are dedicating significant resources to get their trade surveillance models in order. The common domain


Firms should re-engineer their anti-money laundering (AML) systems and controls to refocus on know-your-customer (KYC) processes to prevent the inevitable pile-up of transaction monitoring alerts. Firms’ pivot to digital onboarding has prioritised speed over collecting enough information to determine whether transactions are suspicious. It has created an inefficient, expensive process where AML analysts are sifting


Regulators are busy engineering sell-side and buy-side rule changes which will change the markets, customer and risk management obligations starting this year. JWG has analysed the global landscape and assembled 20+ all-stars at our *virtual* Trading Seminar to discuss our exclusive RegTech research on upcoming compliance challenges.  7 days left to get your Complimentary VIP


Trading RegTech all-stars announced

JWG’s sell-side and asset managers’ trading compliance radars are hot, and we’ve assembled and all-star cast to discuss the key trading perimeter, market data, consumer duty and risk surveillance issues on 22 March. Don’t miss this opportunity to dial-in to the debate. Complimentary VIP Pass Available – Apply Now! Register here for 22 March 2023


JWG RegTech Beacon 29 published

2023 RegTech Beacon – Guiding your way through regulatory storms  We are delighted to publish the 29th issue of JWG’s RegTech Beacon which now serves as our yearbook and recaps 2022 accomplishments as well as providing an outlook of what lies ahead. Our RegTech outlook is one of collaboration between the front office and its supporting


Join us to set the 2023 RegTech agenda

An all-star cast of 40+ speakers will gather virtually on 9th & 10th November 2022 to set the 2023 RegTech agenda at JWG’s 7th annual premier RegTech conference. Markets have been rocked by turbulence unseen in over a decade and the regulatory agenda has shifted quickly. JWG research has defined 10 panels and worked with the industry to


Hack-to-trade schemes and confidential information dealing on the dark web, combined with regulatory warnings about firms’ management of material non-public information (MNPI), are raising further concerns about markets’ ability to keep a lid on insider dealing and other forms of manipulation. The number of cases brought against individuals using stolen data or MNPI to trade,


Economic crime: policy simulator 2022

The way we look at economic crime risks and controls is changing. Sanctions and other drivers have forced institutions to take a more holistic view of risk disciplines and integrate process that on-board clients, screen their transactions and monitor the marketplace. This policy space is ideally suited for an idea contributed by a late RegTech


Economic crime RegTech – countdown!

As sanctions barriers rise and market access is cut off for a digitized market, AML/TF and Surveillance capabilities need to respond quickly with safe and appropriate RegTech.  Join us on 23rd June as 16 market SMEs discuss what this means and what comes next. Register Here In this seminar, leading AML, KYC, Terrorist Financing, Sanctions


Compliance teams can no longer assume that policies which mandate all communication channels are monitored safely behind the firm’s firewall are fit for purpose. Management teams must balance a three legged stool of surveillance policy: generation of alpha in the market, controlling conduct risk, and providing for employees’ wellbeing. In advance of JWG’s 23 June


Today’s economic crime experts face new regulatory demands to modernize risk frameworks as regulators dish out large fines. RegTech solutions have been proven to help integrate and streamline controls, but only if we align with fast-moving new rules.  How can RegTech help bridge risk silos and create effective compliance solutions in 2022? Register Here This


Culture war topics, the spread of misinformation, and the war in Ukraine have further complicated firms’ social media presence and their efforts to craft policies guiding what employees should and should not say online. Firms should reassess policies guiding employees’ social media posts on accounts linked to the company and weigh up whether they are


The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is seeking to improve its market surveillance technology and has tendered for a systems upgrade, a sentiment analysis tool and data sets. It is looking to update and develop the functionality, scope, or capabilities of its existing solution, according to the FCA’s procurement portal. The regulator collects trade information


Rulings by the Belgian and French data privacy authorities (DPAs) emphasise the risk posed by social media monitoring and scraping technology to firms and regulators such as the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that commonly use such tools for sentiment analysis, as well as to monitor individuals’ and organisations’ online activity. “The public nature of the personal data available


Surveillance RegTech 2022

The great work-from-home experiment forced traders from the office and digital surveillance teams into overdrive. RegTech can provide a path forward through serious legal obstacles that stand in the way of effective oversight. However, good compliance is not just about the tech and we need collaborative action to make surveillance RegTech fit for purpose. The


JWG RegTech Beacon 28 published

RegTech Beacon – Guiding your way through global regulatory storms. We are delighted to publish the 28th issue of JWG’s RegTech Beacon which now serves as our yearbook that recaps 2021 accomplishments and provides an outlook of what lies ahead. Our focus this year is defining the next steps required for a truly digital financial infrastructure. 


2022 RegTech agenda reloaded

1,000 visits to the JWG Annual Conference site are keeping the conversation alive. There is still time to listen to the all-star debate, participate in the debates and help set the 2022 RegTech agenda. 2021 Annual conference On the 16th & 17th November, JWG held its 6th annual and its 1st virtual global conference, where


100+ Organizations have registered for RegTech 2021   JWG has finalized an all-star cast of  37 speakers from the best and the brightest in our space which will be gather virtually on 16th & 17th November 2021. Don’t miss this opportunity to join international firms, the Bank of England, FCA, global regulators and trade associations and top banks,


 We are delighted to reveal more details for our annual conference. With so much happening in this space – make sure that you know what risks are coming and how to tackle them! See details below and sign up now to hear a great cast of regulators, academia, firms and suppliers discussing the next generation


A decade ago, JWG worked with Banking Technology to produce the world’s first RegTech magazine for our sector. We are now delighted to be hosting the 6th annual RegTech / SupTech  Conference on 16 & 17 November 2021 which promises to be one of the most exciting, digital events of the season. Register Here Today Agenda


Following a great discussion about the major surveillance AI control gaps highlighted by JWG’s July research  the FATF and BIS have both published complementary AI policy papers.   With penalties of up to 6% of annual revenue 500 working days away, we have decided to build RegTech AI surveillance use cases to: Tease out the


Although no international guidelines on AI exist, the EU is way ahead in policy formulation with a very clear view of what good looks like. JWG research has revealed major control gaps to other jurisdictions and draconian penalties for those that don’t comply in 2023. In preparation, we will be developing detailed business use cases


Following our discussion of several global accountability regimes and forthcoming culture audits we are turning our attention back to AI. This is a very noisy space with Germany, UK, Japan and the US all mandating new controls in advance of MiFID III update which could raise the algo trading bar even higher.   In this


We are pleased to release our 3rd RegCast today. This episode shines a spotlight on the new. digital capabilities required to track neo brokers, digital influencers (e.g., roaring kitty) and the new on-line herds of citizens that can influence market pricing (e.g., GameStop). Picking up with Sam Tyfield, Rachel Wolcott and Gavin Stuart where we


The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) will look at potential risks in neo-brokers’ business models after MEPs raised concerns about payment for order flow (PFOF), short selling and market abuse. Tuesday’s ECON session at the European Parliament was dedicated to discussing the GameStop market event and its impact on EU markets. Steven Maijoor, ESMA’s


The latest episode of RegCast is available now! RegCast 2 covers the UK’s fast moving political and regulatory review process, the key questions they are addressing, and what they are likely to mean for regulators, regulated and their customers. The group discusses past choices and explores the implications of digitizing the future regulatory framework including


As we summarized in our latest Beacon, JWG’s surveillance community has covered quite a patchwork of regulatory obligations over the past 2. In all that time, nothing has pulled all into focus like GameStop. JWG has been digging beyond the broadsheet news to examine what roars from Reddit chat groups will mean to wholesale and


JWG RegTech Beacon 27 published

RegTech Beacon – Guiding your way through global regulatory storms. 2021 is off to a fast start with regulators redoubling their efforts to police a more digitally enabled market. In this Members newsletter we provide an overview of what JWG has been up to and what lies ahead. Topics covered: New themes for RegCast. We summarize our research on emerging global digital regulatory themes and


It has been a very busy 2021 and it is a very noisy financial services regulatory marketplace. JWG is pleased to be helping to contextualise the strategic issues in play with a new podcast series called RegCast which you can access here.   So what is RegCast? RegCast is an industry spotlight on the business


The European Securities and Markets Authority’s (ESMA) extensive proposed guidance to the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) could force the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to make some early decisions to diverge from the regime. “One of the questions is what does the FCA really think about the MAR review? This is where the rubber begins


Key surveillance takeaways from the MAR review

In Partnership with:

By PJ Di Giammarino and Sam Tyfield, Partner, Shoosmiths. The MAR review report was finally released on 23 September and clocked in at 276 pages. It raises a number of key issues for senior management at financial institutions, already struggling to form a holistic view of their communications surveillance obligations under COVID. The extensive review


Sabre rattling: Trade surveillance, RegTech and COVID obligations

In Partnership with:

By Sam Tyfield, Partner, Shoosmiths. On 12 October, a speech by Julia Hoggett, FCA’s Director of Market Oversight, was published here. She speaks of having “rattled [her] sabre” about market abuse and surveillance. She started with some good news; activity the FCA regards as abusive, manipulative or insider dealing has not changed, so far as


The State of Holistic Trade Surveillance – JWG research published 

In Partnership with:

By PJ Di Giammarino Over the past few years, financial services firms have been investigating how to improve trade-related surveillance capabilities and techniques. Expectations from regulators and senior management have been placed under the microscope, mainly due to high surveillance noise levels across all communication channels and asset classes. In tracking this evolution of technologies


In our previous article Trade Surveillance: restructuring the business landscape[1] we identified how holistic regulatory requirements are forcing banks to re-consider the makeup of their operational structures. Our follow-up research has revealed the severity of the situation and how the industry is reacting too slowly. Trade surveillance, if not executed correctly, can result in financial


At this year’s RegTech Capital Markets Conference a debate took place on the benefits of using RegTech for trade surveillance in the context of the evolving technical landscape, led by expert industry professionals on compliance and surveillance. Taking into consideration the volume and quality of data firms are expected to monitor, whether the current system


RegTech and trading: re-gaining control

For years the industry has been at work on the construction site of MiFID II. This has produced a building of basic structural integrity, but one that remains incomplete, and one that has required such a singular focus that surrounding constructions have been neglected. MiFID II is one of the biggest regulatory changes since the


Both MiFID II and MAR have completely changed the regulatory landscape in terms of voice communication surveillance. Both pieces of regulation place a greater emphasis on firms to monitor the surveillance controls that they implement, and also introduce new holistic trade surveillance requirements that, in turn, have driven the development of new, innovative, RegTech solutions.


In fewer than 230 days – 7.5 working months from now, the biggest regulatory change since the 2008 financial crisis is set to come into force.  The legislation, Markets in Financial Instruments Directive/Regulation (MiFID II/R), is one of Europe’s most ambitious and far-reaching financial reforms and is estimated to cost the financial industry billions to


Following on from last month’s Q&A on commodity derivatives within MiFID II/MiFIR, on 17 January ESMA published its guidelines for the disclosure of inside information on commodity derivatives and spot markets under the Market Abuse Regulation framework.  This publication is a response in accordance with Article 7(5) of MAR, that expresses ESMA to be the


Key regulatory themes for 2016

So far 2016 has been one of the most contentious years since the G20 agreed the regulatory reform agenda seven years ago. With ever-rising costs, increasingly more severe penalties, and continued issues with data quality, it would be easy to claim the plans conceived in the wake of the crisis are not going to get


MAR: time to worry about your opinions

JWG’s Customer Data Management Group (CDMG) March focus was the soon to be implemented (3 July 2016) Market Abuse Regulation (MAR). JWG have created a set of rule interpretations for MAR which have been incorporated into our regulatory platform, RegDelta.  The March CDMG also included a rule interpretation segment, where participants ‘deep-dived’ a few of


Continuing on from part 1, where we discussed the European regulator’s priorities for Credit Rating Agencies (CRAs) and Trade Repositories (TRs) for 2016, we now look at the nature and focus of the work the regulator plans to carry out this year to promote supervisory convergence. In October 2015, the European Securities and Markets Authority


The market abuse regulation (MAR) is fast approaching and will impact not just financial services firms, but also any EU listed company. Identified in a number of articles published here on RegTech, and discussed at JWG’s CDMG, (customer data management group), which focused on MAR/MAD changes in August last year, the regulation will involve a


On 28 January 2016, ESMA published a paper consulting on a number of draft guidelines falling under a fraction of the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR).  This consultation paper was based on a previous discussion paper, issued by ESMA on 14 November 2013. In particular, the paper covers the mandates placed on ESMA to produce guidelines


ESMA publishes a less than MAD Q&A

JWG analysis. On 9 November 2015, ESMA published its Q&A on the implementation of the current Market Abuse Directive (MAD).  For those of you looking for some relief, this is a relatively short document, just 8 pages, and it consists of only two questions.  Question one focuses on the disclosure of inside information related to


There is nothing new under MAR RTS …

JWG analysis. … at least, not much!  This week is a significant one for compliance and legal professionals in the financial services industry.  ESMA has finally released 1,500 pages of draft regulatory standards covering trading, market abuse and the settlement of securities. In the past few months, JWG has spent considerable time covering MiFID II,


STR warning

JWG analysis. With almost a 400% increase in the number of suspicious transaction reports received by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) since 2007, you may assume that the monitoring and reporting procedures put in place by firms have increased in quality.  However, although this may be a logical conclusion to draw, a recent FCA newsletter


JWG analysis. At the 8th Customer Data Management Group (CDMG) meeting of 2015, on 18 August, over 20 members from 10 firms came together to discuss the new Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) and the potential challenges it holds. With less than 11 months until particular sections of MAR will apply to the financial services industry,


JWG analysis. Since the financial crisis, there has been an increased focus on tackling market abuse.  As of March this year, the FCA had 49 cases market abuse cases open and, in 2014, 60+ market abuse cases were on their books.  In terms of criminal convictions, three were secured for insider dealing and nine confiscation


JWG analysis. With 40+ regulations covering 500+ KYC data requirements due to be implemented over the next 3 years, meeting the requirements poses significant challenges to all firms in the market, not least client outreach, data management and multiple, iterative, implementation dates.  Combined with record fines for AML failures, and new personal liability for senior


JWG analysis. As the sun slips back into hibernation, schools reopen and autumn looms, regulators, lawyers, risk specialists, change managers and compliance professionals are returning to their desks. Here at JWG we have been busy tabulating the enormous level of movement in the regulatory space during the summer. For those of you lucky enough to


JWG analysis. This summer, regulatory pressure on financial services firms has ratcheted up to unprecedented levels.  Many may have breathed a sigh of relief as Dodd-Frank rule-making slowed … but the respite was only fleeting.  Since July, the industry has been bombarded with 39 new consultation papers (in the EU and UK alone) just as


MAR Consultation Papers: an overview

By Sam Tyfield, Vedder Price. Recently, ESMA published two consultation papers (CPs) on MAR: 1. draft technical standards on MAR (CP1) and 2. draft technical advice on Commission delegated acts (CP2).  The consultation period closes in October 2014. CP1 contains reference to insider trading, buy-backs and stabilisation, market soundings and other issues on which I


JWG analysis Europe has two key market abuse rule-sets being introduced in 2014/15 – The Regulation on Energy Market Integrity and Transparency (REMIT) and the Market Abuse Directive (MAD) and Regulation (MAR). This month, 4 consultations have been released; two from the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) and two from the European


Super Tuesday RegDelta alert no 1

JWG analysis Last week, long after the news of Super Tuesday which reshaped the EU regulatory landscape, Europe made MiFID II, MAR, CSMAD, DGSD and the BRRD law of the land. The final Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) , weighing in at a slim 69% fewer pages thanks to repagination, appears to be


The Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) was adopted back in July.  However, the key changes have yet to show up on many people’s radars.  Whether this is because people aren’t aware of the changes, or because implementation will be largely principles-/outcomes-based, is unclear.  But there are things for firms to do now, especially ahead of MiFID