The words “systemic” and “risk” have been on everyone’s lips for the past few weeks.
And, for big tech at least, we will look at the payments ambitions of the biggest platforms and whether new payment types (among them stablecoins) will scale sufficiently on these platforms to cause alarm. As a result, regulators’ attention is widening.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) The effort could gain new impetus after a federal appeals court ruled late last month that the CFPB’s funding through the Federal Reserve was constitutional.
And this week Yahoo Finance LiveCFPB Director Rohit Chopra It has provided insight into areas ripe for consideration and review. There are probably some new regulations as well.
He said the Financial Stability Oversight Council “has the power to designate certain payment activities.” [including] Clearing and settlement of payments that are systemic or potentially systemic.
One payment method to consider, according to Chopra, is stablecoins, which may “start on the rails of big tech platforms or card networks.”
Who has joined the platform and who has not
“I have a few questions,” he said, about the platform. How do they really use all the data they collect through our phones and the things we buy?”
He noted that beyond the ability to create targeted ads, there may be a “movement into a world of personalized pricing.”
He said regulators are watching cloud services offered by big tech companies and will continue to do so. In particular, we are concerned about the risks associated with outages and attacks by fraudsters, hackers, and non-state and state actors. Risks extend to healthcare, energy and other sectors, he said.
“It’s hard to know exactly which tools to use,” he told the financial site.
As PYMNTS reported in recent weeks, the drumbeat of stablecoin regulation could get louder after stablecoin USDC briefly loses its dollar peg. USDC plunged to 86 cents after stablecoin issuer Circle said some of the funds backing the stablecoin were held by Silicon Valley banks.
Big Tech’s financial services roadmap may be partly determined by open banking. Banks share account data and other details (with consumer permission) so they can offer a variety of financial products. Of course, big tech companies can also apply for a banking license. Apple’s latest Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) and Apple Pay Later efforts are just one recent example of the blurring of the lines between payments, providers, and platforms.
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