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Looking across the key regulatory developments heading to the financial services space in 2026, they fall into three main themes:

  • The changing role and use of regulation in the political landscape,
  • Regulation for the management of risk and the control of instability, and
  • The need for regulation to keep pace with rapid technological change

 

Read our three Outlooks to understand how these themes feature in wholesale banking, asset management and payments regulation over the course of 2026, and beyond.

Political pressures - both domestic and international - drive more varied and sometimes interventionist approaches to regulatory policy, reflecting shifting social and economic priorities. At the same time, the persistent threat of financial crises and market instability has reinforced the need for robust frameworks designed to identify, manage, and mitigate risk across the sector.

Finally, unprecedented advances in technology, including artificial intelligence, digital assets, and complex payment systems, are challenging regulators to adapt their rules and supervisory methods to ensure they remain relevant and proportionate but effective. These three themes are distinct but also deeply interconnected, each influencing how financial regulation evolves in the year ahead.