RegTech IntelligenceJWG analysis. The second round of MiFID II consultation has officially ended. As we have previously noted, the tone from the recent hearing was that, despite more consultation due on some of the fine print, we are largely done discussing the standards and can now begin to start thinking about how to implement them. On
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 we read the comments on our last article on the five tribes of regulatory reform, we were struck by the visceral reaction to the suggestion of sharing the agenda. “Hands-off, that’s my mortgage you’re messing with”, commented one lawyer. We wonder, can tribes achieve their overarching regulatory goals if they are NOT
JWG analysis. It’s only February and we’ve laid out quite a programme of work for 2015. Digesting the 4,000-page Christmas gift, curing the KYC sickness, cutting a trail through MiFID II and taming your global trading troubles – and we’re not yet at the midpoint of the first quarter. Sadly, it is not a blip
By Darragh O’Grady and JWG. Regulatory requirements coming in over the next 3 years will mean firms need to know – and prove that they know – more things about their customer than ever before. Combined with the growth of ‘digital banking’, firms are now having to innovate on the digital front, whilst ensuring compliance
JWG analysis. There is a war going on to ‘Know Your Customer’. As regulators continue to release new requirements for firms to collect and maintain information about their clients and counterparties, the struggle to comply has turned into trench warfare fought across many fronts, and new strategies are needed to avoid a long and uncertain
The need for better counterparty information sits at the centre of most regulatory reform agendas. Unfortunately, this means the period from 2015 to 2017 brings with it massive new documentation, workflow and vendor change for the hundreds of fields maintained for every subaccount in capital markets. Do you know what is about to hit your marketing,
JWG analysis. The industry returned after the break knowing that it had fewer than 500 working days to implement MiFID II but found over 2,000 pages of new text to read. Even worse, the grapevine whispers that more is due out this month. As we’ve written before, organising and planning is the order of the
JWG analysis. 2015 will see a number of new regulatory requirements, long in the proposal or draft stage, crystallise into prescriptions for better customer data management. At a time when record fines for AML failures and new personal liability for senior managers have intensified the pressure to ‘get KYC right’, these ‘remedies’ pose significant challenges
JWG analysis. In our last article on this topic, we spelt out our views on regulatory implementation standards. And the first standard that needs to be defined is how you’re going to organise your work programmes. The shape of your MiFID II programme MiFID II is far beyond just a few ‘tweaks’ to MiFID I. So much
JWG analysis. Conduct risk continues to be a hot topic. There is a number of reasons for this: everybody’s being fined for it, there is a continuous stream of regulatory requirements demanding it and -probably most importantly – no-one knows exactly what it is. The FSA provided a definition in 2011 in their Retail Conduct
Huge fines and complex KYC rules are causing banks to ‘de-risk’ their client portfolios leading to many without access to banking. Now both consumers and politicians are unhappy. For years, the industry has struggled without real standards in the AML arena. So what happens next? SIBOS news was full of more KYC claims again this
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. Following our review of the $260,000,000,000 total cost of regulatory transgressions, we now take a look at what the actual fines are and what the future holds? Firstly, according to the LSE’s review of 2009-2013 fines, is that 38% of fines are related to control failures like governance, internal controls, market abuse and
JWG analysis. It seems you can’t open a paper these days without reading that a financial institution is being fined for some discretion, controls failure or mismanagement. This stark reality that all firms face in the post-crisis financial services landscape. Mounting pressure to get on top of regulatory reform has been matched by a frightening escalation
JWG analysis. “When providing investment advice or portfolio management the investment firm shall obtain the necessary information regarding the client’s or potential client’s knowledge and experience in the investment field relevant to the specific type of product or service … so as to enable the investment firm to recommend to the client or potential client the
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
JWG analysis. ‘What is proportional?’ is a question that firms may well find themselves pondering in the coming months as they begin implementation planning for MiFID II … and the same question is going to be asked by risk and compliance specialists on a regular basis once MiFID II goes live in 2017. This is
JWG analysis. We learnt something this month. The reason Europe calls it a regulatory ‘hearing’ is that it is an opportunity to hear views from both regulators and the market. Of course, that’s just part of the experience as many other senses are triggered when 400 people are locked in a basement for 2 days,
JWG analysis. When we talk to people about MiFID II, they tend to focus on what they need to tell the regulator: transaction reporting, transparency and algorithmic trading often come up {see here for more}. It’s clearly a big deal in terms of firms’ balance sheets and an important part of the regulatory plumbing to
JWG analysis. The continent was rocked by far more than parliamentary elections on 22 May. Early reports from major financial centres confirm the impact from the 844 pages of text released by ESMA on MiFID II / MIFID to be about a 9 on the Richter scale – so high that ESMA’s website gave up
JWG has extracted the following questions from ESMA‘s Consultation Paper on MiFID/MiFIR Technical Advice. ESMA needs to deliver this advice to the European Commission by December 2014 and is therefore subject to a condensed consultation process for this paper. For more on MiFID/MiFIR see here. Q1. Do you agree with the proposed cumulative conditions to be
JWG analysis. Our jaws hit the floor when it was revealed at our CDMG meeting last week that ESMA’s MiFID II technical standards are expected to be in excess of 800 pages with more than 800 questions to be answered by August 2014. And this is just the start. ESMA’s 2014 work plan has over
JWG analysis. The idea of KYC compliance has traditionally been associated with AML, PEP checks and international sanctions, however the new wave of regulations that is to begin rolling out in 2015 will place a whole new set of pressures on businesses to ‘know their clients’. Rachel Wolcott, writing for Accelus’ Compliance Complete, has highlighted
JWG analysis. While the significant reforms of MiFID II, the BRRD, the SRM and the DGS stole the limelight on ‘Super Tuesday’, other significant legislation also made its way through Parliament. The following reforms highlight Parliament’s move to solidify consumer protection within the wider European market. These reforms, the BAD, PRIIPs KID and UCITS V
JWG analysis. The first 700 of 18,000 pages of MiFID II texts have now been published, a little more than a month after the European Commission announced agreement in the trilogue process, but this milestone foreshadows a confused standards landscape that will stretch forward to implementation of the regulations and directives in 2016. For those
Working late into Tuesday night, European lawmakers concluded a compromise over the new Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II). The final text has not yet been made public, and is not expected for several days. However, some details have emerged. Concessions had to be made on both sides, with the Parliament advocating for robust
Big changes are happening at the CFTC: With the departure of Gensler, and the swearing-in of acting Chairman Mark Wetjen, everyone knew that there would be a change of approach. However, the scale and speed of that change has come as a surprise to many. In fact, almost the moment Gensler stepped out of the
How will the PRA, FCA, and CMA manage conflicting competition mandates? On 24 July, during the second reading of the UK’s Banking Reform Bill, it was stated that a new competition objective will be given to the PRA. UK banks now find themselves with three national competition regulators jostling for position, not to mention those
Why EMIR has some banks threatening to stop trading derivatives by 15 September. Under EMIR there are three kinds of counterparties: financial (FC), non-financial (NFC), and non-financial over the clearing threshold (NFC+). By 15 September, FCs and NFCs trading derivatives with one another must agree in writing the joint steps to be taken to mitigate
Recent developments give firms some reasons to celebrate but be prepared for a long engagement With lots of different regulatory benchmark efforts now underway, the industry could be forgiven for not taking a common stance. With IOSCO set to issue final principles in July, ESMA and the EBA are simultaneously consulting on a European set
The new legislative package contains some surprises for those engaged in ‘risky’ trading MiFID II is almost upon us. This month, the Council of the EU agreed their general approach, meaning that the draft of MiFID II/MiFIR is free to advance to the European Parliament. If all goes according to the current plan, the new
Five years after the crisis started, real change is finally in store. Who is on the naughty and nice lists? In 2012, the industry saw a flurry of financial sector reforms. With over 140,000 pages of regulation produced over the past twenty four months, an ambitious but often discordant global regulatory framework has developed, leaving
2012 could well go down as a turning point for the industry. Billions in fines have raised consciousness of the need for better financial crime processes, systems and controls. Regulators have found sanctions breaches, anti-money laundering deficiencies and bribery failures – and will likely to continue to do so as they examine historical compliance. We
Finally, after months of anticipation, European Commission President José-Manuel Barroso outlined his “decisive deal”: a big picture vision of an ideal, sound roadmap for Europe’s financial future. The EC proposes to create a single supervisory mechanism for banks in the euro area – starting on 1 January 2013. Under the proposals the European Central Bank
The Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (SEC, FINRA, NYSE) has released an assessment of 19 firms regarding their controls to prevent misuse of material, non-public information. While not legally binding, this development is important because this is the first comprehensive statement in years regarding a regulatory view of a firms systems and controls for
When the G20 first revealed its plans in April 2009, the scale and scope of new reforms was all encompassing. Now, we are seeing how serious the regulatory community is about them. The battle to know your customer provides a first glimpse of just how seriously the industry will take the new reforms. At the