APP Fraud: Prevention is surely better than paying out

Among the UK regulators' recent output relevant to Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud, two items warrant particular consideration: Read more

Cryptoasset Regulation: UK government publishes policy papers on future regulation of cryptoassets and fiat-backed stablecoins

On 30 October 2023, the government published three policy documents on cryptoassets regulation in the UK, covering fiat-backed stablecoins, the wider cryptoasset regulatory regime and the failure of systemic digital settlement asset (DSA) firms. On the whole, the updates confirm the approaches previously proposed. However, much of the detail will only emerge in the next phase once secondary legislation and regulators' rules have been published. Read more

Herbert Smith Freehills publishes Global Bank Review 2023: Trust Matters

Perhaps the most striking thing about the world of finance a decade and a half since the banking crisis is that the industry has not quite managed to regain the allure and self-confidence of earlier times. Certainly, this is a time in which trust – that most precious commodity in banking – is hard to earn and retain. This year's Global Bank Review: Trust Matters explores trust on many fronts. Read more

The UK Supreme Court’s judgment in Philipp v Barclays: key takeaways for financial institutions executing customer payments

The UK Supreme Court has handed down its seminal judgment in Philipp v Barclays Bank UK plc [2023] UKSC 25, considering the application of the so-called Quincecare duty to the victim of an “authorised push payment” (APP) fraud. In an APP fraud, the victim is induced by fraudulent means to deliberately authorise their bank to send a payment to a bank account controlled by the fraudster. Read more

APP fraud and vulnerable customers – lost in implementation?

In its June 2023 Policy Statement on authorised push payment (APP) fraud (PS23/3), the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) said that payment service providers (PSPs) would not be required to reimburse customers who had failed to exercise the 'customer standard of caution' (on which guidance is awaited) for APP fraud claims.  This makes sense and is consistent with the regulatory principle that 'consumers should take responsibility for their decisions'. Read more

The cost of ‘doing the right thing’

The UK Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) reports that its uphold rate for complaints from customers of firms who are signatories to the Contingent Reimbursement Model (CRM) Code is higher than those from non-signatories. Read more

Grand Designs – Next phase in the Digital Pound build

This article was first published in The Banker on 3 March 2023. Final decision yet to be made The world of money is changing. The received wisdom of “cash is king” has long been declining and the world is gradually moving to a more digitised banking space where digital deposits and payments have become dominant; … Read more