Bank of England: New Bank Start-up Unit launched by the financial regulators

20 January 2016

The PRA and FCA have launched the New Bank Start-up Unit. The Unit is a joint initiative from the UK’s financial regulators giving information and support to newly authorised banks and those thinking of becoming a new bank in the United Kingdom.

The joint New Bank Start-up Unit will assist new banks to enter the market and through the early days of authorisation. It will draw staff from the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) with a dedicated helpline and email address. It will provide new banks with the information and materials they need to navigate the process to become a new bank, as well as with focused supervisory resource during the early years of authorisation.

The New Bank Start-up Unit will provide named case officers for firms during the authorisation process at both the PRA and the FCA and a greater level of supervisory support during the new bank’s early years after they have been authorised.

New banks will benefit from:

Andrew Bailey, Deputy Governor, Prudential Regulation, Bank of England and CEO of the Prudential Regulation Authority said:

“The New Bank Start-Up Unit builds on the work we have already done to reduce the barriers to entry for prospective banks, which has led to twelve new banks now authorised since April 2013. These new banks are a key part of bringing innovation to the sector, particularly where there is a gap in the market – whether it is the service they provide, the customers they target, the products they sell or the technology they use.”

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