On 29 April 2019, the FCA published a speech by Christopher Woolard, Executive Director of Strategy and Competition at the FCA, on the progress of Project Innovate.

Key points to note within the speech include:

• the FCA has now launched  the first cross-border tests of the Global Financial Innovation Network (GFIN) – a group of regulators working together to test new propositions across 12 jurisdictions;
• nearly 700 firms have received some kind of assistance from the FCA’s innovation work;
• of the 47 firms that have completed sandbox testing, around 80% are operating in the market, with the necessary authorisation, and there are a further 63 in the pipeline;
• since its launch, Project Innovate has received over 1,500 requests for support from businesses;
• in July the FCA will hold a follow-up session to last year’s TechSprint on financial crime in order to explore how technology can be employed to break down international barriers; and
• the total number of members in the FCA’s international GFIN network has grown from 12 members to 35.

Further information on the impact of Project Innovate can be found in the FCA’s evaluation report also published on 29 April 2019.