Big tech firms like Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:FB) and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)-owned Google will come under more scrutiny about the way they store data relating to financial services, according to the Financial Conduct Authority.
The changes are part of a new approach from the FCA to help control the expansion of artificial intelligence as the government looks to make the UK a global AI hub.
Nikhil Rathi, chief executive at the FCA, delivered a speech at the economist impact finance transformed event on Wednesday where he mentioned the plans for the regulator going forward.
He said: “At the FCA we are determined that, with the right guardrails in place, AI can offer opportunity.”
“We have announced a call for further input on the role of Big Tech firms as gatekeepers of data and the implications of the ensuing data-sharing asymmetry between Big Tech firms and financial services firms.”
Rathi said he and the FCA remain mindful of the impact large tech companies have on consumer behaviour, arguing that working with these firms can increase competition and stimulate innovation.
However, the financial regulator fears that the current data sets the companies hold if coupled with anonymised information about payments could become more detailed than any held by a financial firm.