John Iannis Mourmouras: Fin-RegTech: regulatory challenges with emphasis on Europe

Keynote speech by Professor John Iannis Mourmouras, Senior Deputy Governor of the Bank of Greece, at Cornell University, New York City, 28 February 2019.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

Introduction

It is a great pleasure for me to be in New York upon the invitation of Citigroup to speak at Cornell University's "Tech Day", at such a ground-breaking seminar, entitled "Big Data and FinTech Innovation". As you know, the University which hosts us today was founded 150 years ago by Ezra Cornell, the inventor of the electric telegraph and founder of Western Union. His motto - which became the University's founding principle, "an institution where anyone can find instruction in any study" - has formed the basis for Cornell University's countless contributions across all fields of knowledge, prioritising public engagement to help improve quality of life worldwide. At this University, founded by such a revolutionary spirit, I have the opportunity to share my thoughts and exchange views with you on what economists have called a major catalyst in the "fourth industrial revolution", the FinTech industry, due to its significant transformative impact on financial services. And let me draw your attention to another parallel: the term FinTech first appeared in the public domain, introduced in the early 1990s by Citigroup, the main organiser of today's event!

My speech today will be structured as follows: After offering some introductory remarks to clarify technical jargon and some remarks on FinTech's current landscape, I will then move on to an overview of FinTech's current state-of-play in the European Union (EU), focusing on its potential impact on the established financial sector, as well as the risks and challenges ahead. Finally, I will take a look into the regulation gap as far as FinTech activities are concerned and possible ways to fill this gap.