Category: Regulation

January 24, 2024 BY Elizabeth Anderson

French privacy watchdog fines Amazon €32m for excessive monitoring of warehouse staff

Reportedly, managers at Amazon France Logistique keep such close tabs on employees that it infringes several rules in the European Union’s (EU) General Data Protection Regulation. CNIL’s investigation tagged using barcode scanners at various checkpoints along the chain as intrusive. Amazon strongly contested any irregularity in the use of these devices and said: We strongly…

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January 09, 2024 BY Elizabeth Anderson

Big Tech and financial watchdog clash over regulation of digital payments

The CCIA maintains that supervising the companies that offer digital payment services will choke innovation and progress, and hamstring startups in the industry. This response followed a November 2023 statement by the CFPB, which claimed that financial operations such as smartphone payments and digital wallets emulated traditional payment methods but fell short of user protection.…

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January 08, 2024 BY Elizabeth Anderson

New Fed faces may be key to calculated rate cuts

This year, the regional banks and their members are Cleveland’s Loretta Mester, Atlanta’s Raphael Bostic, San Francisco’s Mary Daly and Richmond’s Tom Barkin. Despite raising rates to a 22-year record high in H1 of 2023, Wall Street is still expecting rate cuts to begin in March this year, continuing for six rounds, so the new…

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Credit Suisse
December 28, 2023 BY Sam Boughedda

Credit Suisse Fined $3.9 Million by Singapore for Relationship Managers Misconduct

According to the MAS, the relationship managers provided clients with inaccurate or incomplete post-trade disclosures, resulting in their clients being charged spreads above the bilaterally agreed rates for 39 over-the-counter (OTC) bond transactions. For the 39 transactions, MAS stated that Credit Suisse's relationship managers made false statements to their clients regarding the executed interbank prices…

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December 18, 2023 BY Simon Mugo

ESMA Report Indicates Investing Costs Fell Across the Eurozone

According to the ESMA's findings, there was a noticeable reduction in the average cost of investing in these products compared to the previous year. However, the report emphasises the ongoing disparity in costs among different EU countries. Enhanced transparency and potentially reduced expenses are attributed to more explicit fee information, a requirement under EU regulations.…

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FCA
December 12, 2023 BY Simon Mugo

FCA Instructs Investment Firms To Stop “Double Dipping” by February

This concern emerged following an FCA survey involving 42 investment platforms, which revealed that a majority retain a portion of the interest accrued on customer cash balances. The FCA's findings indicate that 71% of these platforms keep some of the interest, with retention rates ranging from 10% to 100%, averaging around 50%. Additionally, 61% of…

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November 17, 2023 BY Elizabeth Anderson

ASIC and AFSA commit to updated memorandum of understanding

The last update occurred in 2014. Essentially, the document states that the two agencies will continue to cooperate in pursuit of their goal to holistically serve the Australian government and protect and promote confidence in the country’s financial system. Setting out a framework for continued cooperation, the refreshed MoU strives to facilitate liaison, assistance, and…

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September 27, 2023 BY Elizabeth Anderson

ESSO ditches Rigs to Reefs oil dumping

In Melbourne, an Esso spokesperson suggested that following the uptick in good environmental news, its retired oil platforms would be removed — including the long steel support structures or ‘jackets’ — from the ocean. In doing so, Esso (owned by ExxonMobil) acknowledged scientific studies that disprove the creation of artificial reefs made from fuel waste.…

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September 01, 2023 BY Elizabeth Anderson

Google DeepMind co-founder calls for ethical Nvidia AI chips

Essentially, this would entail a restriction on the sale of Nvidia AI chips and only allow those with socially responsible agendas to acquire them. In a Financial Times interview, Suleyman said companies should agree to minimum global standards in line with the pledge of AI leaders to the White House.  This pledge refers to the…

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