NEWS: 1 in 4 UK businesses scammed over the past year

Regulatory Watch News

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  Treasury Announces Public-Private Initiative to Strengthen Cybersecurity and Risk Management for AI

  US Department of the Treasury

  February 18, 2026

  WASHINGTON— In support of the President’s AI Action Plan, the U.S. Department of the Treasury today announced the conclusion of a major public-private initiative to strengthen cybersecurity and risk management for artificial intelligence (AI) in the financial services sector. Over the course of February, Treasury will release a series of six resources developed in partnership with industry and federal and state regulatory partners to enable secure and resilient AI across the U.S. financial system.

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  Ex-Council Worker jailed for £893,926 Fraud Against Vulnerable Service Users

  The Crown Prosecution Service

  February 18, 2026

   

  A former Bolton Council worker has been jailed for defrauding almost £900,000 in DWP benefits from vulnerable adults whose finances he was employed to protect.

  Richard Shaw, 46 from Bolton, spent the stolen funds on luxury items including two BMW vehicles costing nearly £120,000, garden improvements worth almost £18,000, holiday lodges in the Ribble Valley worth £100,000, and more than £53,000 in payments to different women with references such as ‘treat’ and ‘nice’ which amounted to hundreds of pounds every week.

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  The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority will simplify the rules for smaller banks.

  Finanstilsynet

  February 18, 2026

  As part of its strategy, the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority is now initiating a project that will enable smaller and non-complex banks in Denmark to be covered by simpler and more proportional regulation.

  Financial regulation, most of which is established in the EU, has expanded significantly since the financial crisis. The starting point of the regulation is uniform rules across EU countries regardless of the size of the institutions, although with certain possibilities for proportionality. The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority is now initiating work to identify areas where smaller and non-complex Danish banks, which typically do not operate internationally, can be covered by simpler and more proportional frameworks than today.