During its meeting on 5 July 2017, the Federal Council adopted an amendment of the Banking Ordinance. It will enter into force on 1 August 2017. The revision should ensure that barriers to market entry for fintech firms are reduced and that the competitiveness of the Swiss financial centre is enhanced.

(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Treasury Department’s banking regulatory proposals could be even better for finance firms than they initially hoped.

A US Federal Reserve governor has poured cold water on the prospect of central bank-issued digital currencies, saying that they raise serious security and privacy concerns and could become a prime target for crooks.

Incorporated in Switzerland on May 16, 2017, the non-profit International RegTech Association (IRTA) is a united community of individuals and organizations, with a shared vision to innovate, advance, and influence the future of Regulatory Technology (RegTech).

Rt Hon. Andrew Tyrie MP, Chairman of the Treasury Committee, has written to Rt Hon. Philip Hammond MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer, about cybersecurity in the financial services sector. Commenting on the correspondence, Mr Tyrie said: “The lines of responsibility and accountability for reducing cyber threats remain opaque.

The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FSA) has inked a deal with the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) designed to make it easier for fintech startups from each market to gain access to the other.

As the 4th EU AML Directive comes into force today, a pair of studies suggests that while most UK FS industry financial crime professionals think the new rules will make it easier to prevent money laundering, they are likely to cost banks millions in inefficient KYC checks.

A Russian hacker accused of helping to develop and maintain the notorious Citadel malware toolkit, which was used to steal more than $500 million from bank accounts, faces up to 10 years in a US prison after pleading guilty to computer fraud.
Having been extradited from Norway in December, this week Mark Vartanyan (who went by the online handle 'Kolypto') pleaded guilty in an Atlanta court. He will be sentenced in June.

Digital currencies such as Bitcoin will not be safe without government intervention and are likely to be counterfeited, according to a Bank of Canada report drawing on the lessons off private bank notes in the 1800s.

European financial institutions could face fines totalling €4.7 billion in the first three years under the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), according to a study by Consult Hyperion.
The report, commissioned by security outfit AllClear ID, estimates that financial institutions may experience 384 data breaches during the timeframe, with fines as high as €260m per breach.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged two former iPayment executives with a scheme that allegedly saw them manipulate the credit card processing firm's accounting systems to steal millions of dollars.

US bank lobby group The Clearing House has called for an overhaul of how its members deal with AML requirements, arguing that they should spend less time and money on submitting suspicious activity reports and instead concentrate on using more innovative methods to thwart money laundering and terrorist financing.