FinTech Global FS Regulatory Round-up - W/e 24 April 2026

In this edition we round up FinTech-related financial services regulatory developments for the week ending 24 April 2026. 

ICYMI

• Open finance: FCA roadmap
• Commercial Court finds good arguable case that, where cryptoassets were taken from an English resident, damage was sustained in England

UK

FCA: Cyber Coordination Group insights 2025

The FCA has published a summary of discussions held throughout 2025 with industry members of its Cyber Coordination Group (CCG) programme. CCG members shared cyber resilience insights on: incident response practices and recovery at scale; implications for cyber security of AI, quantum computing, and other emerging technology; and insider risk management.

The publication does not introduce additional regulatory expectations; the insights are made available so that firms can consider them in the context of existing expectations, learn from others, and strengthen their cyber resilience capabilities. [24 Apr 2026] #CyberResilience #CyberSecurity #AI #QuantumComputing

FCA takes part in global action against illegal finfluencers

The FCA has reported that it led an international 'week of action' involving 17 regulators to stop illegal finfluencers putting consumers' money at risk. This included enforcement activity, consumer awareness campaigns, and educational programmes for finfluencers to act responsibly.

In the UK, the FCA:

• secured a guilty plea from an individual for illegal promotions on social media – criminal proceedings have been commenced against a further two individuals for similar offences;
• sent four targeted warning letters to individuals suspected of engaging in unauthorised financial promotions;
• issued 34 warning alerts against unauthorised firms or individuals, and updated an additional 14 warnings; and
• made 120 account takedown requests to social media platforms hosting illegal finfluencer content.

The regulator called on social media platforms to play a more proactive role in stopping illegal financial promotions at source. [24 Apr 2026] #Finfluencers #SocialMedia

CMORG addresses challenges of emerging ‘frontier AI’ models

The Cross Market Operational Resilience Group (CMORG) has published a message from its co-chairs following a meeting convened on 22 April 2026 to discuss the financial sector’s response to emerging ‘frontier AI’ models. Members reflected on the cyber security challenges posed by these models, noting that the financial services industry is ready for the emerging risks as well as the opportunities for growth and efficiency that they bring.

There was agreement that firms will need to continue to focus on effective practices, including by: utilising AI capabilities to strengthen cyber defence (for example, through ongoing efforts to reduce the attack surface available); improving threat detection and investigation; and further exploration into automating mitigation and response measures. Firms are also encouraged to review recent guidance shared by the Financial Services – Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC) to support preparedness. [23 Apr 2026] #AI #CyberSecurity

FCA and partners target illegal crypto trading

The FCA has announced that it carried out its first operation with enforcement partners to disrupt illegal peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto trading across multiple London locations.

Working with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit, the FCA targeted eight premises suspected of illegal P2P crypto trading. The FCA issued cease and desist letters at each site. Action was taken under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017.

The regulator noted that there are currently no FCA registered P2P crypto traders or platforms operating in the UK. [22 Apr 2026] #Crypto

FCA speech: Supporting fintech in the next phase of innovation

The FCA has published a speech by its Chief Data, Information and Intelligence Officer, Jessica Rusu, at the Innovate Finance Global Summit (IFGS). Ms Rusu spoke about the role of AI in reshaping the financial services and highlighted agentic commerce as the next major shift. She reiterated the FCA's commitment to supporting innovation and announced the next phase of the regulator's AI Lab: extending its partnership with NVIDIA, new cohort of firms entering AI Live Testing, and scaling up the Supercharged Sandbox.

Ms Rusu also touched on the recently published Open Finance roadmap, identifying the key changes it will bring, and announced that the Scale‑Up Unit is open for expressions of interest from solo‑regulated firms. [21 Apr 2026] #AI #SuperchargedSandbox

FCA announces second cohort for AI Live Testing

The FCA has confirmed the second group of firms selected to join AI Live Testing. Eight new firms have been chosen to live test AI applications to support safe and responsible deployment. Testing will conclude by the end of 2026, with an evaluation report expected to be published in Q1 2027.

The FCA will also publish a good and poor practice report for AI in financial services later in 2026 to support firms in the safe and responsible adoption of the developing technology. [21 Apr 2026] #AI

HM Treasury: Draft SI amending Cryptoasset Regulations

HM Treasury has published a draft statutory instrument (SI) containing proposed amendments to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) Regulations 2026. The revisions are aimed at providing greater certainty for firms seeking to offer stablecoins payments services, and to remove barriers to certain other use cases. The draft SI also contains additional changes for the purposes of ensuring an internationally competitive UK regime for cryptoassets.

A policy note setting out the aims behind the legislation has been published alongside the draft SI. HM Treasury invites feedback on the proposals and draft provisions by 22 May 2026. [21 Apr 2026] #Crypto

FCA: Innovation insights 2025

The FCA has published a report detailing its insights into financial innovation, drawing on fintech market developments and how firms are using FCA innovation services. The paper outlines the changes taking place within the area, identifies emerging risks, and describes how FCA innovation services support firms in testing and scaling responsibly.

Key findings include:

• in 2025, global fintech investment exceeded $130bn across more than 4,500 deals, but funding concentrated in fewer, larger and more mature firms;
• as technology advances, the key challenge has shifted from building new products to understanding how regulation applies to them – firms that engage early and test safely are better placed to scale responsibly; and
• applications to the FCA Regulatory Sandbox and Innovation Pathways rose 49% in 2025 – AI, distributed ledger technology (DLT), open banking and open finance were the main technologies used by applicants.

During 2026, the regulator will focus on clearer testing criteria, broader engagement with incumbents – particularly in wholesale markets and general insurance – and stronger support for UK competitiveness and international growth. [20 Apr 2026] #RegulatorySandbox #AI #DLT #OpenBanking #OpenFinance

FSRC oral evidence: Growth and proposed regulation of stablecoins

The FSRC has published uncorrected transcripts from two oral evidence sessions, held on 15 April 2026, focused on the growth and proposed regulation of stablecoins in the UK. In the first session, the FSRC heard from: Lucy Rigby, Economic Secretary to the Treasury; Laura Montford, Deputy Director of Payments and Fintech at HM Treasury; and William Morello, Head of Cryptoassets at HM Treasury.

The second session heard from the FCA's Executive Director of Payments, David Geale, and its Director of Payments, Matthew Long. [20 Apr 2026] #Stablecoin

Europe

ESAs: Joint Committee annual report 2025

The Joint Committee of the European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, EIOPA and ESMA – the ESAs) has published its annual report for 2025, setting out the main priorities and achievements of its cross-sectoral work over the past year.

In 2025, the Joint Committee focused on protecting consumers in increasingly digital financial markets, strengthening operational and cyber resilience through the implementation of the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), improving the effectiveness of sustainable finance disclosures, and enhancing cross-sectoral risk monitoring.

The Joint Committee also advanced a range of other cross-sectoral initiatives, including work to enhance the EU securitisation framework, progress on the European Single Access Point (ESAP), and support for financial innovation through the European Forum for Innovation Facilitators (EFIF). [24 Apr 2026] #DORA

ECB signs agreements with European standard setters to facilitate digital euro payments

The European Central Bank (ECB) has announced that it signed agreements with three European standard‑setting organisations – the European Card Payment Cooperation, nexo standards and the Berlin Group – to reuse existing open technical standards for processing digital euro online payments. Additional standards may be added in the future, subject to approval by the ECB’s Governing Council. [24 Apr 2026] #Payments

EU institutions agree roadmap to achieve 'One Europe, One Market' by end-2027

The Presidents of the European Parliament (EP), Council of the EU and the EC have signed a joint declaration committing to achieve the 'One Europe, One Market' roadmap by the end of 2027. The roadmap objectives consist of five strategic building blocks: simplifying rules; a more integrated Single Market, including by removing the ten most harmful barriers; championing strong trade; reducing energy prices and decarbonising; and driving the digital and AI transformation.

An annex to the roadmap sets out key legislative and policy initiatives across the five strategic building blocks and corresponding timelines for agreement. The three institutions will meet on a quarterly basis to review progress, identify obstacles, coordinate actions, update and complete the annex as necessary, and review the building blocks to encompass the social dimension of the Single Market. [24 Apr 2026] #AI

Australia

ASIC sets out roadmap for digital assets law reform

ASIC has announced that it intends to issue new regulatory guidance and standards as part of implementing the Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Act 2026, which brings digital asset platforms (DAPs) and tokenised custody platforms (TCPs) under the financial services licensing regime from April 2027.

DAPs are facilities where an operator holds digital tokens (also known as crypto) and can be thought of as exchanges or brokerages. In contrast, TCPs are facilities where an operator holds non-money assets (such as gold) or traditional financial products and creates a 1:1 token which represent an underlying right to redeem. Under the new regime, ASIC will license, supervise and take any necessary regulatory action against these platforms.

ASIC has now set out its roadmap for implementing the new regime over the next 18 months:

• months 1 to 6 will focus on stakeholder roundtables and establishing an industry advisory group to discuss regulatory guidance and standards;
• months 6 to 12 will focus on the release of the new regulatory guide and setting of standards; and
• months 12 to 18 will allow DAP and TCP operators to lodge financial services licence applications and operate under regulatory relief while their applications are processed.  [20 Apr 2026] #DigitalAsset #Crypto

Hong Kong

SFC joins global regulatory effort to combat unlawful activities of finfluencers

The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has joined fellow members of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) in the 2026 'Global Week of Action Against Unlawful Finfluencers' to tackle unlawful financial promotions on social media.  A total of 17 IOSCO members, including the SFC, have participated in the initiative this year, almost twice as many as 2025 (see our previous update).

This initiative aims at disrupting the unlawful activities of finfluencers, with regulators undertaking measures ranging from enforcement and supervisory actions to investor education and awareness programmes.

In the past year, the SFC took a number of enforcement actions, such as:

• securing a custodial sentence against a finfluencer convicted of providing paid investment advice without a licence (see our previous update);
• issuing a compliance advice letter to a finfluencer in relation to the unlicensed promotion of overseas virtual asset trading platforms to the Hong Kong public;
• submitting 12 reports concerning 33 suspicious posts or accounts to major social media platforms since July 2025 (with over 90% of such posts or accounts being promptly removed by the respective platforms); and
• leveraging social media platforms to combat unlawful activities of finfluencers through collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and other local authorities under the Anti‑Scam Consumer Protection Charter 3.0 (see our previous update), as well as through its leadership role in the IOSCO’s Asia‑Pacific Regional Committee Scams Working Group.

The SFC has been proactive in strengthening its capability in detecting social media financial scams through its in-house AI-powered social media monitoring system (SENSOR) launched in the third quarter of 2025 (see our previous update).  It has also continued with its investor education efforts, working with the Hong Kong Police Force and other agencies to enhance public awareness of scams across different community groups.  [24 Apr 2026] #Finfluencers #SocialMedia

SFC launches framework for secondary trading of tokenised SFC‑authorised investment products

The SFC has announced a new regulatory framework (set out in a circular) to pilot the secondary trading of tokenised SFC‑authorised investment products in Hong Kong, with a view to improving their tradability and further integrating them with the broader Web3.0 ecosystem.

The framework primarily aims to facilitate secondary trading of tokenised SFC‑authorised open‑ended funds on SFC‑licensed virtual asset trading platforms (VATPs), including for retail investors, while over‑the‑counter arrangements may be considered on a case‑by‑case basis.  The initial batch of products is expected to focus on tokenised money market funds.  The SFC will review their operation and consider expanding the product scope in due course.

Drawing on the experiences of Hong Kong’s exchange-traded fund market and SFC-licensed VATP operators, the SFC sets out in the circular the requirements for secondary trading of tokenised products, covering the following areas:

• operation of the trading channel;
• risk management and supervisory controls to ensure fair pricing;
• liquidity provision;
• disclosure in offering documents and online dedicated interfaces;
• client onboarding; and
• notification to the SFC, for example, early alerts of untoward circumstances and notification of cessation or suspension of dealing in the tokenised products.

The circular also set out the requirements for prior consultation, application and approval for product providers and intermediaries engaging in secondary trading of tokenised products.

This circular should be read in conjunction with:

• the circular on tokenisation of SFC authorised investment products (updated to take into account the above framework on secondary trading); and
• the circular on intermediaries engaging in tokenised securities-related activities (see our previous update).  [20 Apr 2026] #VirtualAsset

SFC Executive Director sets out current progress and upcoming priorities under ASPIRe roadmap for digital assets in keynote speech

In a keynote speech at the Hong Kong Web3 Festival 2026, Dr Eric Yip, the SFC's Executive Director of Intermediaries, reviewed the progress made since the launch of the SFC’s ASPIRe roadmap in early 2025 (see our previous update) and outlined regulatory priorities for 2026 and beyond.  

The speech emphasised the SFC’s continued application of the principle of 'same business, same risks, same rules' in regulating digital asset activities, alongside a focus on disciplined execution of the 12 initiatives under the ASPIRe roadmap.

Dr Yip highlighted the progress made under the roadmap so far, such as the enabling of staking services, consulting on licensing regimes for virtual asset (VA) dealers, custodians, and providers of advisory and management services, opening pathways to global liquidity via shared order books, broadening platform service and product offerings, expanding custody coverage, commencing its CrypTech initiative, and allowing licensed VA brokers to offer margin financing subject to meeting specified risk management requirements.

Looking ahead, Dr Yip highlighted some of the SFC’s upcoming priorities:

• completing the legislative process for the VA licensing regimes for dealing, advisory, management and custody services;
• developing a pragmatic solution for custody, insurance, and compensation arrangements in order to balance the use of the latest technology with investor asset protection;
• working on the VA perpetuals framework, actively discussing product specifications, clearing and settlement arrangements, margin requirements, disclosures, and other relevant topics with market participants – good progress has been made and guidance will be provided once ready;
• finetuning licensing terms and conditions to facilitate the launch of margin financing services (it will likely need to consult the market regarding the financial resources requirements for digital assets);
• working on product categorisation for tokenised assets, by considering in practice how the regulatory regime can embrace tokenised real-world assets, and support the tokenisation and trading of tokenised bonds, funds and other instruments.  The SFC has just announced that VATPs can offer secondary on-platform trading of tokenised SFC-authorised funds (see 'SFC launches framework for secondary trading of tokenised SFC‑authorised investment products' above); and
• continuing the work on its CrypTech initiative, moving from conceptualisation to proof of concept – the SFC is experimenting with the use of supervisory technology to automate market participants' reporting and build analytics for blockchain, custody surveillance, and market surveillance.  [20 Apr 2026] #DigitalAsset #VirtualAsset #Tokenisation

Singapore

MAS consultation: Prudential treatment of cryptoassets on permissionless blockchains

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has published a consultation on the prudential treatment of cryptoassets on permissionless blockchains. MAS proposes to allow banks to classify and treat a permissionless cryptoasset as a Group 1 cryptoasset, if the permissionless cryptoasset is able to meet a set of principle-based requirements designed to adequately mitigate the risks arising from the use of permissionless blockchains.

Responses are requested by 18 May 2026. [17 Apr 2026] #Crypto

Thailand

BoT speech: Advancing safe and inclusive digital finance

The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has published the opening keynote by its Assistant Governor Daranee Saeju at Money20/20 Asia in Bangkok on how to build digital economy. The Assistant Governor outlined the structure of a digital economy – identity, payments and data – and discussed the two layers of digital public infrastructure established in Thailand: digital identity and payments. She also noted important data gaps that need addressing. [21 Apr 2026] #DigitalFinance #Payments

SECT to permit digital asset business operators to engage in derivatives-related businesses

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SECT) has proposed principles for revising the licensing framework for derivatives businesses, to allow digital asset business operators to apply for derivatives business licences without the need to establish new legal entities. The draft revisions also aim to enable investors to use such derivatives as additional risk management tools, while enhancing the SECT’s regulatory oversight across all types of businesses to a unified standard, in line with international standards.

Responses are requested by 20 May 2026. [20 Apr 2026] #DigitalAsset

SECT consults on definition of 'major shareholder' requiring approval for derivatives business operators

SECT has published a consultation on its review of the definition of 'major shareholder' whose approval is required for derivatives business operators. The proposal aims to enhance supervisory oversight up to the level of ultimate controlling persons, in line with the regulatory approach applied to securities business operators and digital asset business operators.

Responses are requested by 1 May 2026. [17 Apr 2026] #DigitalAsset

India

RBI issues consolidated directions on digital payments – e-mandate framework

The RBI has issued directions on the digital payments – e-mandate framework, 2026. The directions consolidate extant instructions on e-mandates and incorporate a few minor changes based on stakeholder feedback. The directions come into effect immediately.  [21 Apr 2026] #Payments

IFSCA: Guidelines on cyber security and cyber resilience for MIIs in IFSC

IFSCA has issued its guidelines on cyber security and cyber resilience for market infrastructure institutions (MIIs) in the IFSC. The guidelines seek to:

• strengthen governance and reinforce accountability for cyber security at the board and senior management level;
• address evolving cyber threat landscape, including emerging risks such as those arising from developments in quantum computing;
• align MII cyber security practices with national and international standards; and
• ensure robust incident detection, response, reporting and recovery mechanisms.

The guidelines will apply from 1 April 2026. [20 Apr 2026] #CyberSecurity #CyberResilience

US

Treasury Secretary presents budget before the Appropriations Subcommittee

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent appeared before the Appropriations Subcommittee on Apri 22, 2026 to present the 2027 Fiscal Year Budget request for the Treasury Department, which represents a 12% decrease from current enacted levels.

Mr Bessent explained that the Treasury's targeted spending reductions would allow for enhanced investment in national security, including bolstering cyber capabilities, sanctions, and combatting illicit financial activity. The request also included a modest investment to advance institutional expertise in digital assets, housing finance, and global financial markets within Treasury, considered particularly important for the implementation of the GENIUS Act stablecoin regulatory framework. [Apr 22, 2026] #DigitalAsset #GENIUSAct #Stablecoin

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