Blog
The 5th Money Laundering Directive – Transposition into Irish Law
The Criminal Justice Act (CJA) 2021 became effective on 23rd April 2021 with the transposition of the 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive (5MLD) into Irish Law. This blog
UK Cryptoasset Registration – How To Best Prepare Your Firm
Crypto firms operating in the UK, prior to 10th January 2020, are required, in compliance with the 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive (5MLD), to register with
New Senior Manager appointed to fscom’s Payments Team
fscom, one of the leading compliance firms for the regulated sector in the UK and Ireland is continuing to expand its Payments Team with the
Why use a compliance consultant?
When it comes to the subject of using consultancy firms, companies and individuals within the same company have differing views on the pros and cons
The Digital Workplace: more than just digitising your services
fscom’s Director, Philip Creed shares his insights into how fscom have been managing to continue to provide our clients exceptional service in a more digital
The Crypto Regulatory Frontier: Security Tokens, In or Out?
‘IPO’, three letters to embody the essence of a $3.76tn UK market, so fundamental that their meaning speaks even to the uninitiated. Initial offerings, however,
Let’s talk about Strong Customer Authentication: CP21/3
In this fourth blog in our series on the FCA’s CP21/3 consultation, Greg James looks at the proposed changes to strong customer authentication (SCA); one of the
EEA payment and e-money institutions after Brexit: CP21/3
For the EEA payment service providers now in the FCA’s reach because of Brexit, the past few months have been a sharp learning curve as
Open Banking after Brexit: CP21/3
The FCA has proposed new guidance on Open Banking, charting its first course of regulatory divergence in the area after Brexit.[1] As detailed below, among other
FCA consultation on changes for payment and e-money institutions: CP21/3
For the payments compliance and regulation sector, 2021 has continued at the same frantic pace as 2020, with multiple consultations issued in the first quarter
The Kalifa Review – What It Means for UK Fintech and The Fight Against Financial Crime.
The Kalifa review, commissioned by the HMT sets out a strategic plan for the UK to remain a world class centre in fintech. Earlier this
Vulnerable Customers: FCA publishes new guidance on firms’ responsibilities
In this blog, Dipesh Patel discusses the FCA’s finalised guidance on firm’s responsibilities to ensure they are treating vulnerable customers fairly. With 27.7 million adults in the
Q&A of a Q&A: A breakdown of the EBA’s recent SCA opinions
n this blog, Greg James simplifies the questions and answers provided by the EBA in their seven new Q&As on strong customer authentication and helps
6AMLD – What are the key changes to the Sixth Anti Money Laundering Directive?
In this blog, Fred McDowell, Senior Manager within the fincrime team in fscom, outlines the key changes in the 6th Anti Money Laundering Directive (6AMLD) and
BRIEFING: The UK Investment Firm Prudential Regime (IFPR)
In mid-December, the FCA issued a consultation paper (CP20/24) in which it set out the basis for the rules it intends to apply to the prudential requirements
Payments, financial resilience and wind-down plans
Yesterday, the FCA published survey results that will not have surprised many in the sector. As at the end of October 2020, 4,000 financial service
New insolvency regime for payment and e-money institutions
Yesterday HM Treasury issued a consultation on a proposed special administration regime for insolvent payment and e-money institutions. Speed is clearly of the essence for
A simple guide to certifying staff under SM&CR
Within this blog, fscom’s Managing Director, Jamie Cooke discusses SM&CR, the revised timelines and shares a simple guide to certifying staff under the Senior Manager
fscom achieves globally recognised certification, ISO 27001 for best practice in information security.
fscom achieves ISO 27001, demonstrating its unwavering commitment to enhancing the security of its information as we continue to work in the new ‘virtual reality’
Supercapital – What happens when a payment (or e-money institution) becomes insolvent?
Safeguarding is an area that raises many points of debate and contention within the industry. And having assisted dozens of payment and e-money institutions with
Dear CEO Investment Firm Letter
For most financial services firms it is probably fair to say that the second week of August is not the most productive week of the
‘Smile’ and bear it: operational resilience and the Co-operative Bank
In this blog, Simon Whittaker and Greg James discusses the recent outages faced by Smile, an online banking service offered by the Co-operative Bank. The
FCA Announces Wind-down Plan Requirements
The FCA has, yesterday, told payment and e-money institutions that they must produce wind-down plans (WDP) as a condition of authorisation. The move is the
FCA: temporary prudential guidance for payment and e-money institutions
The FCA has, yesterday, published temporary guidance for payment and e-money institutions on how to safeguard and manage their prudential risks. The guidance was consulted on in
Does your business deal in crypto? Priority cryptoasset registration applications deadline fast approaching
The 30 June deadline for crypto asset applications to receive a priority review from the FCA is fast approaching. As you may be aware, cryptoasset
Webinar: Everything you need to know about drafting a winddown plan
fscom will be hosting a webinar on what should be included in a regulated firm’s winddown plan to help clients with the complex task of
The FCA’s Financial Resilience Survey
As we enter our 12th week of lockdown, the FCA has begun a process to obtain regular, specific data from a substantial number of firms to
FCA consultation on safeguarding and capital adequacy guidance
Payment and e-money institutions have long called for clearer guidance on the FCA’s expectations of how they meet their obligation to protect customers’ funds. Friday week ago, the FCA
How We Are Managing Our Mental Health in fscom
fscom’s Head of People, Brona Cathcart shares her insights into how the fscom team have been getting on with looking after their mental health as
Handling Complaints and Vulnerable Customers in COVID-19
With the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic yet to be seen, financial services institutions have had to implement business continuity plans, introduce remote working
