
Manesh Samtani is the Editor at Regulation Asia, where he leads the regional news desk from Hong Kong, directing coverage of critical regulatory developments impacting financial services across APAC. Manesh specialises in analysing how new rules and technologies are reshaping banking, capital markets, and the fight against financial crime, providing finance professionals, compliance leaders, and policymakers with the intelligence they need to navigate risk and understand the impact of regulatory change in the region. manesh@regulationasia.com
Structural Regulation
Malaysia Issues Draft Licensing Framework for Digital Banks
28/12/2019
Foreign financial institutions will be allowed to hold a majority stake, but preference will be given to applications where Malaysian nationals own the controlling equity interest.
Anti-Money Laundering
HKMA Publishes Highlights from First AML/CFT RegTech Forum
27/12/2019
Access to quality data and a more proactive knowledge sharing approach are critical to moving to intelligence-led methods in financial crime risk management.
Stablecoins
MAS Consults on Application of Payment Services Act to Stablecoins
26/12/2019
MAS seeks views on whether stablecoin holders deserve the same regulatory protections as e-money, and whether other regulations should be introduced to maintain price stability.
AI Risk & Governance
HKMA Publishes Report on AI Adoption by Hong Kong Banks
24/12/2019
The lack of employees with AI expertise was cited by 70% of respondents as the top barrier to AI adoption, according to a survey.
Emerging Prudential Risks
HKMA Rebuts BOE Claim of Hong Kong Fund Outflows
19/12/2019
The BOE said in its biannual Financial Stability Report that $5bn has left Hong Kong since April, but the HKMA says the figure does not represent outflows from the city’s banking system.
Climate Risk
HKEX to Include Climate Risk Disclosures in ESG Framework
19/12/2019
Listed companies will have to disclose climate-related issues on a ‘comply or explain’ basis, HKEX said in its conclusions from a May consultation to update its ESG reporting framework
Market Risk
SFC Concludes Consultation on OTC Derivatives Margin Requirements
19/12/2019
IM requirements will be phased in for firms with AANA exceeding HK$375bn starting from 1 September 2020, the same date VM requirements take effect.
Structural Regulation
Asian Benchmark Administrators Face ‘Perfect Storm’ in 2021
17/12/2019
The BMR transition period is now scheduled to end alongside LIBOR’s discontinuation, creating a “perfect storm” of regulatory change for benchmark administrators and users at end-2021.
Reporting & Disclosures
Asset Managers Looking to Boost ESG, Climate Efforts: SFC
17/12/2019
There is significant interest among asset management firms to step up their ESG efforts and management of environmental and climate risks, an SFC survey has found.
Cloud & Infrastructure
RegTech Association Flags Under-Investment in Australian Regtech
12/12/2019
Despite Australia having everything needed to be a global RegTech leader, mainstream adoption is being stymied by an equity gap, says new research from the RegTech Association.
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