As we noted in our Commercial, Technology & Regulatory Handbook, "2026 isn't just another year, it's a turning point" for financial services. So it has proved.
Last week, the Innovate Finance Global Summit – the flagship event at UK FinTech Week 2026 – descended on the historic Guildhall in London, drawing 1,500 fintech experts from around the globe.
It was an occasion for the UK to burnish its credentials in a sector it's long claimed to lead. That, no doubt, is why the government chose 21 April 2026 to unveil a new package of measures aimed at modernising payment services regulation.
A formal consultation with the payments sector will follow shortly:
"we will soon consult on how to reform the regulation of payment services and electronic money, ensuring the framework is ready to support tokenised payments such as stablecoins, unlock the full potential of Open Banking, and explore how to enable the safe adoption of AI agents to conduct payments on behalf of consumers and businesses."
But here's what we know now:
A single framework for traditional and tokenised payments
The government plans to fold payment services and electronic money regulation into the UK's existing financial services framework.
The result? In theory, this should mean one coherent regime covering both conventional payments and tokenised forms, including stablecoins and tokenised deposits.
Stablecoins will be regulated specifically for payment use, provided they're issued under the new UK regulated activity for stablecoin issuance. Separate legislation will aim to reduce administrative burdens on firms wanting to offer stablecoin payment services, with the stated aim of making the UK an attractive jurisdiction for digital assets.
AI agents and Open Banking
Two elements stand out:
- first, the government is examining how payment services regulation should adapt to payments made by AI agents, a recognition that autonomous software is already entering the payments chain.
- second, the FCA will gain new powers over the future of Open Banking, including the ability to underpin new Open Banking payment products within commercial schemes.
Structural changes to the regulators
The government has published its response to the consultation on merging the Payment Systems Regulator into the FCA to provide for a streamlined regulatory structure with fewer bodies overseeing payments.
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The regulatory direction of travel is now clear. As we observe in our Commercial, Technology & Regulatory Handbook:
"in-house teams in regulated firms should indeed be excited about all the opportunity that lies ahead."
The challenge for the sector is to rise to meet that opportunity, not just as a matter of obligation, but as a source of competitive advantage. Firms that treat compliance as a strategic priority, rather than a box-ticking exercise, will find themselves better placed to earn and retain the trust on which lasting success depends.
