Covid-19 has led to a strong increase in the use of fintech products and services, prompting central banks and other financial authorities to step up their own regulatory innovation efforts, according to a report from the World Bank and the Cambridge Centre For Alternative Finance (CCAF).

Source: US Justice Deparment

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPMorgan), a New York, New York-based global banking and financial services firm, has entered into a resolution with the Department of Justice to resolve criminal charges related to two distinct schemes to defraud: the first involving tens of thousands of episodes of unlawful trading in the markets for precious metals futures contracts, and the second involving thousands of episodes of unlawful trading in the markets for U.S. Treasury futures contracts and in the secondary (cash) market for U.S. Treasury notes and bonds.

Citibank has been fined $4.5 million by the Commodity Future Trading Commission (CFTC) for a design flaw which led to the deletion of millions of audio files, including recordings which had been subpoenaed.

Australian bank Westpac has become the latest institution to fall foul of anti-money laundering rules after it was slapped with a record fine of A$1.3bn ($0.9bn) by the Australian regulator.

A remarkable leak detailing 17 years' worth of confidential transaction reporting has cast doubt on banks' anti-money laundering (AML) efforts by suggesting that leading banks continued to transfer money even when they knew it could be connected to fraud.

An Australian Senate Committee inquiry into fintech has put forth 32 recommendations to promote further competition in the financial sector, with a particular focus on regulatory impediments.

Source: BIS

In recent years, the growth of technology-related threats has increased the importance of banks' operational resilience.