Outsourcing

Recent Articles

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  18/12/2024

  EU’s final ITS version extends the scope of ICT services subject to DORA

  On 2 December 2024, the final version of implementing technical standards (ITS) on standard templates for the register of information was published as Commission Implementing Regulation 2024/2956 in the Official Journal of the European Union. The ITS extends the scope of information and communication technology (ICT) services under Regulation (EU) 2022/2554 on digital operational resilience (DORA), leading to additional compliance tasks for both financial entities and ICT third-party service providers. The following article provides an analysis of this regulation.Definition of ICT services under...

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  21/11/2024

  Critical third parties: final policy and rules demonstrate a welcome cooperation between regulators and industry

  The new critical third parties (CTPs) regime comes into force from 1 January, 2025 and will be hugely significant for designated CTPs to the UK financial sector.The policy statement issued jointly by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and Bank of England (PS24/16/PS16/24) provides feedback to responses received to the consultation paper earlier this year.Overall, the finalised rules have focused this expansion of the regulatory perimeter on the most systemic risks to the financial industry presented by CTPs.ClarificationThe new rules offer some helpful...

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  30/10/2024

  October 2024 Highlights: Key UK and EU Operational Resilience Updates

  As the landscape of operational resilience continues to evolve, this past month has been particularly eventful, marked by significant developments in both the UK and EU. With the impending deadline for compliance with the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) on January 17, 2025, institutions are racing to meet stringent requirements designed to enhance their resilience to digital threats. In the UK, the anticipation builds as regulators are due to publish the finalised Critical Third Parties Regime Rules by the end of 2024, which will further shape the operational resilience framework. Additionally,...

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  07/06/2024

  ESMA issues first formal guidance on use of AI in retail financial services

  The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) recently released a public statement on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the provision of retail investment services. The statement provides initial guidance to investment firms and credit institutions using, or planning to use, AI so they can ensure compliance with their obligations under MiFID II. It also outlines live use cases and ESMA’s understanding of the “known challenges” currently facing firms in adopting AI.Emerging ESMA approach?While this is by no means ESMA’s first publication or statement on AI,...

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  06/06/2024

  Market outages: IOSCO good practices and key findings from global survey

  On 5 June 2024, the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) published its Final Report on Market Outages, setting out good practices for trading venues and market participants in the event that a trading venue experiences technical problems or operational issues.The Final Report includes a survey of the global legislative and regulatory framework for market outages, as well as the results of IOSCO’s survey of recent market outages from 2018 to 2022. IOSCO found that, out of its members surveyed, which includes the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and US Securities...

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  29/05/2024

  Operational Resilience: The Countdown

  The countdown is on to make sure your firm is ready to comply with the operational resilience rules by 31 March 2025. This date marks the end of the transition period, but the requirement to be operationally resilient is not a once and done activity, or something that should be seen as tick-box regulatory compliance. Instead, this should be a way of working that is embedded into a firm’s overall culture.The FCA provided feedback to firms on 28 May 2024 which included insights and observations to support firms with their continued implementation of the rules.In our view, this FCA...

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