Alyned Thinking

This text was submitted as an answer to the UK Financial Conduct Authority Call for Input on RegTech. We’re publishing it also here on our blog to foster wider discussion.

2016 has arrived and if we are to believe the talking heads on blogs, Twitter and LinkedIn, it is the year FinTech companies will continue to dismantle and replace banks and the RegTech force awakens.

There is a new buzzword rocking the financial services industry: RegTech which stands for “Regulation Technology" To explain it, we have to make a little excursion to last week’s hot topic in the form of FinTech (Financial Technology).

Some FinTechs have become so successful over the recent months that they are challenging some of the worlds oldest major banks and insurances in revenue and market cap. Where no FinTech can compete, however, is on a track record of trust that dates back centuries, as in the case of some banks.

In nearly every organisation I have encountered, the approach has been to open up a word processor, draft a policy, get sign-off and publish it somewhere as a PDF. I have never seen this being particularly effective, and here’s why.