Two-thirds of lenders haven’t fully reviewed the new Consumer Duty regulations

16th June 2023 Consumer Lending | #consumer duty

With less than two months to go before the new Consumer Duty deadline, two-thirds (65%) of UK lenders admit they are yet to fully review the regulation requirements, according to new research from AI powered transaction analytics firm, Fuse. The FCA’s new Consumer Duty will come into force at the end of July 2023. It…

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Consumer car finance falls by 15%

15th June 2023 Consumer Lending |

New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer car finance new business volumes fell in April 2023 by 15% compared with the same month in 2022. The corresponding value of new business fell by 16% over the same period.  In the first four months of 2023, new business fell 8%…

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Regtech spend expected to increase by 124% by 2028

12th June 2023 Consumer Lending | #regtech

A new study from Juniper Research, has found that spend on regtech by financial institutions and other industries will increase by 124% between 2023 and 2028 globally, from $83 billion in 2023. Increasingly complex regulatory requirements are driving corporates to adopt a range of new technologies to facilitate compliance. New approaches include the use of shared…

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Over £1.2bn lost to fraud in 2022

11th May 2023 Consumer Lending | #fraud

People in the UK lost £1.2bn to fraud in 2022, the equivalent of £2,300 every minute according to bank industry group UK Finance. UK Finance said around three million scams took place – slightly less than the previous year – with frauds involving payment cards being the most common. UK Finance said losses were not always…

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FCA announces measures to improve whistleblower confidence

5th May 2023 Consumer Lending |

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has set out actions to improve the confidence of whistleblowers – including sharing further information with whistleblowers on how it’s acted on their information; improving the use of information provided by whistleblowers; and improving how it captures information from whistleblowers. This follows a qualitative survey of whistleblowers who had provided information to…

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LSB urges banks to join focus on financial resilience

27th April 2023 Consumer Lending |

Self-regulatory body, the Lending Standards Board (LSB), is urging firms to prepare for the financial struggles customers will face this year, as incomes are eaten away by the higher cost of everyday life. In its 2023/24 Business Plan released today, the LSB outlines how its areas of focus for the year will include financial resilience…

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FCA puts banks on alert in fight against money laundering via the Post Office

24th April 2023 Consumer Lending | #FCA

A series of measures designed to reduce the risk of money laundering via the Post Office have been set out by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The regulator brought together partners including the National Economic Crime Centre (NECC), industry and government to strengthen controls while seeking to ensure that legitimate customers can continue to use…

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Overdraft rules has saved consumers £1bn

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says that improved overdraft rules that reduced high fees for unarranged borrowing removed complex charging structures and helped consumers who were repeatedly using their overdrafts. Rules introduced in April 2020 meant that banks couldn’t charge more for unarranged overdrafts than for arranged ones. They also had to remove high fees…

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Regulators back open banking advances

18th April 2023 Consumer Lending | #open banking

The Financial Conduct Authority and the Payment Systems Regulator have launched a fresh push to encourage more competition in banking services via third-party firms. As co-chairs of the Joint Regulatory Oversight Committee, the regulators issued a joint statement saying: “While significant progress has been made, there is more to be done to deliver the full…

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Former TSB Executive fined over Senior Manager conduct rule breach

14th April 2023 Company News | #regulation

The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has fined Carlos Abarca, the former Chief Information Officer (CIO) of TSB Bank, £81,620 for breaching PRA Senior Manager Conduct Rule 2 as he failed to take reasonable steps to ensure that TSB adequately managed and supervised appropriately its outsourcing arrangement in relation to its 2018 IT migration programme. The…

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FCA reveals business plan

6th April 2023 Consumer Lending | #FCA

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published its business plan setting out its top priorities for the year ahead. The plan includes the introduction of consumer duty and reforming the UK’s listing regime. The FCA says that the programme aims to achieve better outcomes for consumers and markets, in line with its three-year strategy. Last…

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Half of UK have been victims of financial crime

30th March 2023 Consumer Lending | #fraud

More than half of people in he UK say that they have been victims of a financial scam, with wealthier people most likely to have been targeted, according to the new research from Saltus. The latest Saltus Wealth Index Report surveyed more than 2,000 people in the UK and discovered that 51% had been victim to a financial…

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Amigo Loans announces closure after rescue plan failure

Sub-prime lender Amigo Loans is to be liquidated after months of trying to come up with a rescue plan ended in failure. The company said  Amigo said it would stop lending with immediate effect and will be placed into an orderly wind-down, with all surplus assets transferred to the creditors of its compensation scheme. Those owed compensation…

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