Yahoo Finance Global cooperation on fintech regulation 'critically important' say banking bosses
Banking bosses have said that cooperation between governments should be paramount in a post-Brexit world when looking to the future of finance.
Speaking at a Treasury committee hearing on Monday, David Livingstone, CEO of Europe, Middle East and Africa at Citi (C) said that he believes it is "critically important" that cooperation between regulators moves to the next level.
He said that, particularly in the management of financial crime, cooperating on the movement of data across borders is crucial in order to manage risk.
Adding to this, Anne Boden, CEO of Starling Bank said that fintechs are looking to the government to provide a less opaque system with regards to regulation.
"We'd like simplification," she said, adding that there are multiple different levels to think about and hoops to jump through when thinking about products such as buy-now-pay-later, cryptocurrencies and e-money licences.
Adding to the chorus, John Collins, chief legal and regulatory officer at Santander UK (SAN.MC) said the UK has the ability to be "nimble" post-Brexit in this environment.
"Lack of conflicting rules and regulations would really help," said Boden.
Read more: Bank of England and UK Treasury explore 'digital pound'
The calls come amid a crossroads in digital financial markets, as consumers pile into cryptocurrencies and central banks mull launching their own digital currencies (CBDCs).
Earlier this year, the Bank of England (BOE) and the UK Treasury announced they are exploring a potential national digital currency or "digital pound", amid a groundswell of interest in digital markets.
Boden added that she thinks CBDCs could mean a revolution in banking business models and institutions will have to think carefully about whether they would benefit consumers before launching any products.
