The use of technology to streamline regulatory processes continues to grow and evolve at a rapid pace not only in the Financial Services sector but in other sectors as well. This report states the various benefits that Regulatory Technologies (RegTech) offer and how these are proven by their rapid growth and asks the question of how the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia can galvanize RegTech growth in an effective, change-provoking, and sustainable manner.
RegTech initially emerged as a solution explored by financial institutions seeking to improve their compliance practices by using emerging technology. RegTech was conceived in the Financial Services sector mostly after the 2008 global financial crisis to enable organizations to cope with the sudden onslaught of regulatory complexities and related costs. However, RegTech soon started to diversify to other sectors as it proved to improve compliance, supervisory, and regulatory capabilities.
Although a common definition of RegTech is yet to be agreed on, few common themes within the application of RegTech solution have already been identified: