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Global rules on foreign direct investment (FDI)
Cross-border acquisitions and investments increasingly trigger foreign direct investment (FDI) screening requirements.
Australia | Publication | June 24, 2019
Following the re-election of the Morrison Government, the Consumer Data Right (CDR) for the Australian banking sector is imminent. From 1 July 2019, the four major Australian banks are expected to publish generic product information by way of an application programming interface (API). The API will allow data to be read by a computer so products can be easily compared.
Last month, NRF hosted a Financial Institutions Symposium where attendees gained insights from four CDR experts on the proposed regime. The panellists agreed that in ensuring the CDR achieves its purpose, the Government must balance the competing interests of all parties who will be affected by the new regime. CDR will allow Australians to access their own financial data and share it with accredited data recipients, with the aim to facilitate and encourage more competition in the banking sector. While a simple proposition, the introduction of the regime is accompanied by tensions from a privacy and competition law perspective, in addition to the technology challenges of security and the ability of different systems across the industry being able to “talk” to each other.
Notwithstanding that the legislation underpinning the regime is yet to be passed by parliament1, the steps to finalising the CDR regime are now underway. It is expected that the law will be passed in the coming months and open banking will be in full effect from 1 February 2020. Banks should be ready by to share data by 1 July 2019. For those wishing to profit from the potential increase in consumers seeking to benefit from a streamlined approach to information sharing, being ready for when a potential customer seeks to have their information transferred is critical.
The ACCC will perform the role of the CDR Registrar and will maintain the Register of Accredited Persons (the Register) who have been granted accreditation as an Accredited Data Recipient. The ACCC is currently seeking feedback in relation to the design of the Register to ensure it meets the needs of the CDR ecosystem. The ACCC also intends to consult on other aspects of the CDR Register by the end of June 2019, including: (i) business and technical design principles; (ii) security profile and certificate management; and (iii) caching and refreshing of Register metadata2.
Our Financial Institutions Symposium CDR panellists agreed that, for the CDR to be an effective regime, consumers must have complete confidence and trust that their data will be used appropriately. All panellists agreed that the framework effectively facilitates this. Financial Institutions wishing to take advantage of the regime should take steps now – a CDR regime is imminent.
Publication
Cross-border acquisitions and investments increasingly trigger foreign direct investment (FDI) screening requirements.
Publication
On February 2, 2024, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union confirmed that the Committee of Permanent Representatives had signed the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Regulation, referred to as the AI Act. Approval by the EU Parliament followed on 13 March 2024, and the AI Act is likely to appear in the EU’s Official Journal around May 2024. The AI Act aims to establish a stringent legal framework governing the development, marketing, and utilisation of artificial intelligence within the region, thereby marking a significant advancement in the regulation of this burgeoning domain.
Publication
The EU’s Artificial Intelligence Regulation, commonly referred to as the AI Act, is expected to come into force during the summer of 2024 (the AI Act). The AI Act will be the first comprehensive legal framework for the use and development of artificial intelligence (AI), and is intended to ensure that AI systems developed and used in the EU are safe, transparent, traceable, non-discriminatory and environmentally friendly.
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