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Tough New Penalties For Illegal MSBs Go Live In Malaysia
A new law that will introduce tougher penalties for money services businesses (MSBs) in Malaysia that operate illegally is now in effect.
The Money Services Business (Amendment) Act 2024 (MSBA 2024) came into force on August 1, 2024.
Under the new rules, operators of illegal MSBs can be imprisoned for up to ten years and fined up to MYR50,000 ($11,100).
MSBA 2024 also provides greater clarity on the offence of abetting illegal MSBs and the scope of evidence that can be used to charge an illegal operator.
In-scope MSBs include money changers, remittance service operators and currency wholesalers.
China, Hong Kong Sign MoU On Bilateral Linkage Of Payment Systems
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Fund (HKMA) have signed a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreeing to work on further payment system linkages.
The key item on the agenda for the two central banks is the linkage of Hong Kong’s Faster Payment System (FPS) to the Chinese mainland.
Since May this year, Hong Kong residents have been able to use the FPS to top up an e-CNY wallet to make cross-border retail payments in mainland China.
However, Hongkongers are still unable to use the FPS to make regular transactions within mainland China.
PSR Proposes Alignment With CMA On Settlement Discount Policies
The UK’s Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has proposed aligning its settlement discount guidance with new recommendations from the country’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
The CMA is revising its policy to allow larger discounts for settlement cases, suggesting a maximum of 40 percent before a statement of objections (SO) and 25 percent afterwards. The current limits are 20 percent and 10 percent respectively.
The PSR supports this shift, arguing that consistency with the CMA's approach helps maintain neutrality and clarity for businesses regarding regulatory enforcement actions.
Stakeholders are invited to submit comments on the CMA’s proposed changes by September 13, 2024.
The PSR plans to update its Competition Act 1998 (CA98) guidance based on the CMA's final decisions and sector-specific feedback.
Austrian Regulator Fines Two Banks Over Compliance Failures
The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) has announced penalties against European American Investment Bank Aktiengesellschaft (Euram Bank) for failing to submit its audited 2023 annual financial statements, which the FMA says have been overdue since July 1.
Despite previous orders on July 3 and July 16, the bank did not comply, prompting the FMA to enforce a €30,000 penalty and mandate compliance.
Additionally, flatexDEGIRO Bank AG has received a €22,480 fine for providing unclear and misleading information on its website regarding investment services, violating the Securities Supervision Act 2018 and EU regulations.
Both decisions are legally binding, the FMA has confirmed.
