Article #2: Regulatory reform in uncertain times - No rest for the weary

Despite “reform fatigue” and squeezed profit margins, financial services firms are dealing with a continued flood of regulation. Some are turning to new technologies for compliance help.

In this article, written by the Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by Mazars, we explore regulatory change in the financial services sector and the impact that it has not only on global financial markets, but on costs to both the financial services providers and their clients due to decreased liquidity, less risk taking and a flight to quality. Regulatory change is often thought of as being driven by macro prudential and financial stability risks, in addition to geo-politics. After all, Brexit negotiations, Europe’s alternating political and economic landscape, Asia’s growing importance as a financial centre, ​ and ​president Trump’s promises ​ to​ remove regulatory rules may​ greatly change​ global financial regulation​s in coming years and create opportunities for regulatory arbitrage.​ However regulation is likely to increasingly be driven by the regulators trying to catch up with technological developments. This is already demonstrated with the advance of ‘regtech’ – a sub-set of fintech that concentrates on how technology can assist in the delivery of regulatory requirements. Overall this article investigate the above with a view of what the global financial sector’s regulatory landscape may look like in 2030.

Please click below to download the article or visit the dedicated microsite on http://www.eiuperspectives.economist.com/