The text of the new Japan UK free trade agreement (or ?comprehensive economic partnership?) is now available and lays the foundations for future assistance to financial services firms active in both markets.

The Japan UK agreement establishes regulatory cooperation in financial services (providing in Annex 8-A further details on making such cooperation a reality). Regulatory cooperation that lessens the regulatory burden on firms active in both markets is potentially of significant value to an industry as heavily regulated as banking and payments. For example, coordinating Japanese and UK intra-group large exposure and other regulatory capital requirements could result in significant savings to banking groups subject to both regimes.

UK Finance promotes regulatory coordination and supervisory cooperation as a key means to enhance the utility of our members? operations in the UK in doing business in other markets. We also support another helpful feature of the Japan UK agreement; the prohibition of requirements to oblige local storage of data held by firms (subject to limited exceptions for proper public purposes) and measures to allow free transfer of such data (in this case, between Japan and the UK). Data mobility promotes the efficient operation of banking and payments businesses active in multiple jurisdictions, without compromising the privacy and safety of sensitive personal or business information.

We also promote our objectives concerning financial services market access and trade through the membership of our chair Bob Wigley in the government's financial services Trade Advisory Group, and through the membership of our Director of International Affairs, Angus Canvin, in the government's working level financial services Expert Trade Advisory Group.