Context
A new Bill designed to ensure the UK’s world-leading financial services sector continues to thrive and grasp new opportunities on the global stage was introduced to Parliament on 21 October 2020.
Key points to note
- The Financial Services Bill is an important first step in the UK taking responsibility for its financial services regulation, ensuring that the UK maintains the highest regulatory standards and remains an open and dynamic global financial centre now that the it has left the EU.
- The Bill is intended to enhance the competitiveness of the sector and ensure it continues to deliver for UK consumers and businesses.
- HMT states that the measures in the Bill will:
- Enhance the UK’s world-leading prudential standards and promote financial stability by enabling the implementation of the remaining Basel III standards and a new prudential regime for investment firms, and giving the FCA the powers it needs to oversee an orderly transition away from the LIBOR benchmark.
- Promote openness between the UK and international markets by simplifying the process to market overseas investment funds in the UK and delivering a Ministerial commitment to provide long-term access between the UK and Gibraltar for financial services firms.
- Maintain an effective financial services regulatory framework and sound capital markets with several smaller measures, including measures to improve the functioning of the Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products Regulation and increase penalties for market abuse.
Next actions
The Bill will now be subject to the usual processes of legislative scrutiny in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Once both Houses of Parliament have agreed, it will move forwards to receive Royal Assent at which point the Bill will become law.