UK Finance Minister Rachel Reeves aims to rebalance the British financial system’s regulatory rules as part of a broad package of reforms to boost competitiveness and unlock innovation, as well as generate economic growth. “We are the second largest exporter of financial services in the G7. But we cannot take the United Kingdom’s status as a global financial center for granted”, says Reeves in a speech prepared for his first “Mansion House” address, in the City of London. “In a highly competitive world, we need to achieve this status and work to maintain it”, said the minister.
Fighting fraud
Reeves will say that post-financial crisis regulatory changes created a system that sought to eliminate risk-taking, but “went too far” and led to unintended consequences. In view of this, the structure of the Financial Ombudsman Service, a body that seeks resolutions in financial disputes, will be modernized. The British government will also consult on replacing the current certifications regime, which applies to staff below the top of management, with an approach that reduces costs for financial companies, according to the minister.
To combat fraud that cost UK consumers almost £8.3 billion last year alone, Reeves will say a coordinated effort across sectors, law enforcement and government is needed. The government will launch a pilot to provide a digital Gilt instrument, the British Treasury bond, using Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), a data storage system distributed across a computer network.
Continues after advertising
In relation to pension reform, consultations will be held ahead of the Bill to merge the defined contribution pension schemes and the local government pension scheme in England and Wales into mega funds – mirroring the existing model in Australia and in Canada. “This, together with reforms to ensure better value from these pension schemes, could unlock around £80 billion of new investment in businesses and infrastructure,” according to the proposals outlined in the document.
FREE ACCESS
BONDS PORTFOLIO
