March 20, 2017 – FinTech and Blockchain Law Watch

Lendit Conference 2017

Mar 20 2017

K&L Gates sponsored and attended Lendit again this year. For this year’s conference, we added a Monday afternoon cocktail hour to our exhibitor’s booth, and were able to meet a number of old and new friends in the process. In attendance were K&L attorneys Ed Dartley, Tony Nolan, Sasha Burstein, Linda Odom, John ReVeal, and Joe Valenti. Tony participated in a panel discussion entitled “True Lender and Madden Case: Impact on Industry-2 Years In.” The panel addressed several recent court cases and legislative developments that affect the availability of federal preemption to marketplace loans originated or purchased by non-bank lenders.

We found this year’s conference to be something of a coming of age for the marketplace lending industry. There was a sense that the industry is maturing, and that was reflected in the panel discussions and the networking of attendees. We found the conference to be as valuable for the re-connecting with existing associates and business colleagues as for the introductions to new ones.

As we continue to work with clients in virtually every aspect of marketplace lending, we find Lendit and other conferences to be a unique opportunity to interface with industry participants on cutting-edge developments, catch up with clients, and generally stay abreast of this fast-moving industry. Finally, please join us for Altfi Europe Summit 2017 in London on March 30, where we will be sponsoring and speaking at that marketplace lending event.

UK Government’s digital strategy

Mar 20 2017

By Jonathan Lawrence

The UK Government’s Digital Strategy published on 1 March 2017 contains an overview of actions the Government and regulators are taking to support the UK FinTech industry:

supporting UK banks to deliver Open Banking through a fully open application programming interface (API), providing access to authorised third parties by Q1 2018. Third-parties will then be able to access consumers’ data in real-time
supporting industry to design and deliver a pensions dashboard by 2019 – a digital interface where an individual can view all their pensions in one place
working with Tech City UK on a FinTech Delivery Panel to set out a long-term strategy for UK FinTech and identify key industry initiatives. This panel comprises key representatives from the FinTech sector, existing financial services sector, and the Financial Inclusion Commission
appointing regional FinTech envoys to help the growth of FinTech across the UK. To date, regional FinTech envoys have been appointed for the North of England and Scotland
showcasing UK FinTech to investors at the annual International FinTech Conference, to take place in London on 12 April 2017

OCC Releases Draft Licensing Manual for Evaluating Fintech Bank Charter Applications

Mar 20 2017

By Anthony Nolan

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency today issued its draft licensing manual in furtherance of its proposal to grant national bank license to fintech companies. This provides additional detail on evaluating charter applications from fintech companies that engage in the business of banking. This is an interesting riposte to the Republican letter asking the OCC to delay the fintech charter process. A link to the OCC’s press release appears here.

Regulators in the UK and Japan enter into Co-operation Framework

Mar 20 2017

By Jonathan Lawrence

The Financial Services Agency of Japan (JFSA) and the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have entered into a Co-operation Framework to support innovative FinTech companies in their respective markets. For the full text of the agreement by way of an exchange of letters, see Letter from the JFSA to the FCA and Letter from the FCA to the JFSA.

This Co-operation Framework will provide a regulatory referral system for innovative financial businesses that have been offered support by the JFSA or the FCA through their respective FinTech innovation functions, or would qualify for such support (an Innovator Business). The FCA launched Project Innovate in October 2014 which is led by the FCA’s Innovation Hub. The JFSA established its FinTech Support Desk in December 2015 as a one-stop contact point for FinTech businesses.

Archive:March 20, 2017