The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has partnered with NVIDIA Corp. to provide regulated financial firms with access to the company’s computing infrastructure and enterprise AI software. The initiative aims to accelerate AI experimentation and development in the financial sector.
The collaboration targets firms in the early stages of AI exploration, offering enhanced access to data, technical resources, and regulatory guidance.
ccording to Jessica Rusu, the FCA’s chief data, intelligence and information officer, the program especially supports companies with limited capacity to deploy AI solutions.
To join the program, applicants must outline their project’s purpose, the issue or opportunity it addresses, technical needs, expected impact, and what makes the approach distinct. The FCA plans to make the AI sandbox available by October 2025.
For firms already experienced in AI, the FCA offers a separate live testing framework.
This ongoing program provides direct interaction with FCA teams as companies develop and apply AI models in real-time environments.
The Association of British Insurers welcomed the initiative. Lucy Ashton, ABI’s senior policy adviser for international and digital affairs, stated that the move provides a controlled environment for responsible AI experimentation. She emphasized the importance of aligning innovation with strong customer outcomes and improved service quality.
As an international, innovative industry with data at its heart, the insurance sector is focused on ensuring the significant opportunities to innovate with AI are harnessed responsibly.
Lucy Ashton, ABI’s senior policy adviser, international and digital affairs
“It’s key that the regulator continues to collaborate closely with industry to ensure that good customer outcomes are at the heart of innovations and that technological advancements enhance insurance customer experiences,” Lucy Ashton said.
The FCA’s AI sandbox is part of a broader strategy to promote digital innovation without introducing new AI-specific regulations. The regulator intends to use existing supervisory frameworks to oversee AI development and deployment in financial services.
