FCA announces new regulator for £75 trillion payments systems industry
Another announcement this morning from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The City watchdog has unveiled plans for a new regulator to oversee UK payment systems.
Introduced by April of next year, the regulator will monitor the £75 trillion payment systems industry, which processes over 7bn transactions each year.
Competition will be "high on the agenda" of the new body, says the FCA. With the largest payment systems owned and managed by the big banks, concerns are that the sector lacks "transparency and innovation". It needs to be easier, it says, for challenger banks to access systems and "compete with the bigger players".
The FCA’s has asked for views on what issues face the sector.
Martin Wheatley, chief executive, said:
This sector is critical to the economy so it must reflect the needs of people and firms and enjoy their confidence.
We need to know if the sector is as open as it should be to new entrants into the market and are consumers getting the best possible deal?