WIREDGOV

Ireland's Central Bank joins a growing number of regulators actively encouraging innovation in the financial services sector.

The Central Bank of Ireland has announced the launch of a fintech innovation hub and industry engagement programme to keep step with the evolving fintech and regulatory landscapes. Its aim is to allow firms to directly engage with the Central Bank on innovation. It is following in the steps of the FCA's regulatory sandbox, which has proven highly successful, attracting increasing number of applications from fintechs operating in blockchain based payment services, RegTech propositions, general insurance, AML controls, biometric digital ID and Know Your Customer (KYC) verification.

A new Central Bank unit will focus on engagement, sharing and listening, and will be a two-way street. The regulator will have a direct contact point for new FinTech firms and existing firms that are becoming more innovative. Such firms will be able to contact the Central Bank with questions. This is set to give firms a way to engage with the bank outside of more formal regulatory interactions, such as in the authorisations process. In so doing, the Central Bank will be able to learn from the firms about their ideas, the technologies they are developing, and have a view to where financial services are heading. Ireland has a thriving digital ecosystem and is viewed by many tech firms and banks as an ideal location for post-Brexit relocation and passporting, lending a sense of urgency to the Bank's efforts.

The bank also intends to launch a dedicated section in its Website to address common questions and issues and to host a series of 'FinTech Roundtables' starting later in 2018.