By The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK has introduced a permanent Digital Sandbox, offering a full-time testpad for firms seeking to explore and experiment with innovative technologies.
Previously, the platform was only available temporarily to participants in pilots and TechSprints. However, due to the success of these initiatives, the FCA has decided to make the Sandbox a permanent resource.
During the pilots and TechSprints, more than half of the participating Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) achieved positive outcomes, such as launching new products, securing funding and partnerships, and receiving industry awards or recognition.
With the permanent Digital Sandbox, participants will have ongoing access to a vast array of resources, including over 200 synthetic, public, or anonymized datasets and more than 1000 APIs. These resources enable firms to test and validate their technology solutions effectively. The datasets cover various areas, including payments and transactions data, social media data, investment information, Companies House data, and credit data. Additionally, an observation deck will be available for regulators, incumbents, and others to observe ongoing testing at a technical level.
Starting from 1st August, the FCA will accept applications for the Sandbox across a wide spectrum of financial use cases. The approval process is promised to take no longer than four weeks, providing firms with a quick and efficient path to explore innovative ideas and technologies in the financial sector.
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