"In the response, the Government has announced that it is planning to implement the following major recommendations of the report: -introducing a tough new Senior Persons regime governing the behaviour of senior bank staff; -introducing new banking standards rules to promote higher standards for all bank staff; -introducing a new criminal offence for reckless misconduct for senior bankers; -reversing the burden of proof so that bank bosses are held accountable for breaches within their areas of responsibility; and working with the regulators to implement the proposals on pay which will allow bonuses to be deferred for up to 10 years and enable 100 per cent -clawback of bonuses where banks receive state aid -asking the regulators to implement the key recommendations on corporate governance to ensure that firms have the correct systems in place to identify risks and maintain standards on ethics and culture. -providing PRA with a secondary competition objective to strengthen its role in ensuring banking markets are effective and deliver good outcomes for consumers -asking the new payments regulator, once established, to urgently examine account portability and payments system ownership. The report also sets out the Government’s initial response to the Parliamentary Commission on Banking’s overall conclusions and its response to all of its key detailed recommendations. It is noted that BoE, PRA and FCA will be issuing their own responses in the autumn. Annexes in the report respond to earlier reports from the Comission and set out a summary of responses to the Government’s 2012 consultation on sanctions for the directors of failed banks. The Government also welcomes the Committee’s HBOS report and states that themes on which the regulators were requested to expand on will be addressed by PRA and FCA as part of a report on the failure of HBOS, which they expect to publish later this year."

This document comprises proceedings in the original languages of a roundtable on competition and payment systems held in October 2012. It sets out the structure of payment systems in various jurisdictions and considers issues such as new technologies and regulatory challenges.

This document describes the concept of a mobile wallet which provides an intuitive interface to the user of a mobile device to manage his/her portfolio of mobile payments next to other mobile services. Responses are required by 19 September 2013.

FCA reports that, following a review of how the largest high street banks and mutuals process requests to cancel continuous payment authorities, they have agreed that they will ensure that when a customer asks for a recurring payment to end - that will be sufficient to cancel the arrangement. They have also confirmed that should a payment go through by mistake following cancellation by a customer the customer will be refunded immediately. FCA noted that, particularly in relation to payday loans, some banks and mutuals were not cancelling continuous payment authorities when asked to do so. In addition to securing this commitment, the largest banks and mutuals have agreed to review every inpidual complaint they have received about the non-cancellation and to pay redress where payments have continued to be made despite the customer cancelling the arrangement. This applies to all complaints since November 2009 when FSA began regulating banking conduct. FCA has also published a note aimed at consumers on continuous payment authorities (second link below).

This revised document addresses operational issues arising from implementation of the SEPA credit transfer scheme rulebook, SEPA core direct debit scheme rulebook and SEPA business-to-business direct debit scheme rulebook.

The Payment Services Council has published market research in respect of the above which asked participants to compare and contrast three different switching models - with particular emphasis on account number portability to explore customers’ views of this. The three models were: changing account numbers but with a payment re-direction service (as will be provided by the new industry-wide switching service being launched this September).account number portability (customers retaining their sort code and account number when they change provider) and the use of portable unique proxy customer IDs, which would be used to make and receive payments instead of using sort codes and account numbers. The Payments Council notes that the its new account switching service, due to be launched in September, should deliver all the main features that customers have identified as being essential in any successful transfer system, but notes its support for the independent review of the new account switching service that OFT will be undertaking in 2015.

FCA has updated this approach document to reflect that the transitional period in the Electronic Money Regulations has come to an end and the change of regulatory body from FSA to FCA. It has clarified information provided on: spent convictions; the definition of a head office; when FCA may cancel an electronic money issuer’s authorisation or registration; the passporting process the application of host state legislation to FCA-authorised electronic money issuers; the use of FSA/FCA logos; the application of the conduct of business rules to distributors and the SEPA legislation; the process for submitting reporting returns and the fees applicable to e-money issuers.

This new version of the approach document has been updated to reflect the change of regulatory body from FSA to FCA. FCA highlights that chapter 3 has been amended in the light of changes made by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2013; chapter 6 has been amended in respect of the definition of “establishment”, which has changed back to that used in the Directive and chapter 7 has been updated to reflect policy on FSA/FCA logos.

"The final report has now been published. Key recommendations are cited as: A new Senior Persons Regime, replacing the Approved Persons Regime, to ensure that the most important responsibilities within banks are assigned to specific, senior inpiduals so they can be held fully accountable for their decisions and the standards of their banks in these areas. The report comments: “The Approved Persons Regime has created a largely illusory impression of regulatory control over inpiduals, while meaningful responsibilities were not in practice attributed to anyone. As a result, there was little realistic prospect of effective enforcement action, even in many of the most flagrant cases of failure” A new licensing regime underpinned by Banking Standards Rules to ensure those who can do serious harm are subject to the full range of enforcement powers - these would apply to both Senior Persons and licensed bank staff and a breach would constitute grounds for enforcement action by the regulators. A new criminal offence for Senior Persons of reckless misconduct in the management of a bank, carrying a custodial sentence - following a conviction, the remuneration received by an inpidual during the period of reckless behaviour should be recoverable through separate civil proceedings. A new remuneration code better to align risks taken and rewards received in remuneration. This would include longer deferrals; more of that deferred remuneration to be in forms which favour the long term performance and soundness of the firm; the avoidance of reliance on narrow measures of bank profitability in calculating remuneration; inpidual claims on outstanding deferred remuneration to be subject to cancellation in the light of inpidual or wider misconduct or a downturn in the performance of the bank or a business area; and powers to enable deferred remuneration to Senior Persons and licensed inpiduals, as well as any unvested pension rights and entitlements associated with loss of office, to be cancelled in any case in which a bank requires direct taxpayer support. Regulatory and supervisory approach. The report sets out a large number of recommendations with regard to this. Among these, it recommends that TSC undertake an inquiry in three years’ time into the supervisory and regulatory approach of FCA and PRA. TSC has asked FCA and PRA to examine how they will minimise the risk of appearing to act as shadow directors under their new approach to regulation, and to publish their findings – the report suggests that “something more substantial than the assurances given to date is required”. The report recommends that TSC, when undertaking its inquiry into the supervisory approach of both regulators, assesses whether FCA’s approach to data collection has been appropriate and that it considers FCA’s use of its product intervention tools in its inquiry into the supervisory approach. The report considers that FCA should provide clear reasons when it does not consider that initiation of a collective consumer redress scheme is appropriate. The report raises concerns over the relationship between BoE/PRA and its execs It is recommended that FPC should be given the duty of setting the leverage ratio, adding “if the regulators’ and supervisors’ independence is to be meaningful, the setting of the leverage ratio must form part of their discretionary armoury”. "

The roadmap is intended to set out an industry strategy for the development of payment systems in the UK and establish a shared view, at a strategic level, of how the shared infrastructure could be set up five to ten years from now, and the key development initiatives collectively required to migrate the shared infrastructure and services to that destination. Following the publication of this initial report, version 1 of the roadmap will be delivered during the Q1 2014 and version 2 published later in 2014.