The post-Brexit era has ushered in a new regulatory reality for financial institutions operating across Europe and the UK. As the UK established its own securitisation reporting regime under the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), diverging from the European Union’s framework governed by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), institutions now face the complex challenge of dual compliance. Navigating this divergence is not just a matter of ticking regulatory boxes—it demands a strategic, technology-driven approach to ensure operational efficiency, data quality, and future readiness.
Publicis Sapient’s partnership with European DataWarehouse (EDW) offers a proven blueprint for success. By enabling EDW to support both ESMA and FCA regimes through a modular, cloud-native platform, Publicis Sapient has demonstrated how digital transformation can turn compliance challenges into opportunities for growth and innovation.
Prior to Brexit, financial institutions could rely on a harmonised set of securitisation regulations across the EU. The UK’s exit, however, introduced a new layer of complexity. The FCA’s securitisation regulations, while initially similar to ESMA’s, have begun to diverge in both technical and operational requirements. For organisations like EDW—already established as the Eurosystem’s first central data repository for asset-backed securities (ABS)—this meant:
The risk of non-compliance, operational inefficiency, and increased costs loomed large for any institution unable to adapt quickly and effectively.
To address these challenges, Publicis Sapient designed and implemented a scalable, multi-instance platform architecture for EDW, leveraging Microsoft Azure’s big data capabilities. This approach delivered several key advantages:
The platform’s cloud-first design enables real-time processing, validation, and storage of billions of loan-level data records. Its scalability ensures that EDW can rapidly adapt to evolving requirements from both the FCA and ESMA, while maintaining high availability and robust security for sensitive financial data.
A core innovation was the platform’s modular, multi-instance capability. This allows EDW to efficiently manage separate regulatory regimes for the EU and UK, reusing up to 80% of the core solution architecture. The result: accelerated time-to-market for new regulatory requirements, operational consistency, and significant cost efficiencies. This modularity also means that future regulatory changes—whether in the UK, EU, or other jurisdictions—can be accommodated with minimal disruption.
Publicis Sapient’s agile methodologies were critical in responding to frequent regulatory updates and technical changes. Through rapid iteration and continuous delivery, the platform remained compliant and user-friendly, even as requirements evolved. Automated DevOps pipelines and infrastructure-as-code practices further enhanced operational efficiency, enabling rapid deployment and consistent governance.
Advanced front-end technologies and automated data validation pipelines provided a seamless experience for issuers, investors, and regulators. Robust validation and quality assessment tools ensured that all submissions met the stringent standards of both ESMA and FCA, supporting transparency and due diligence in both markets.
On January 17, 2022, EDW was officially registered by the FCA as one of the first UK Securitisation Repositories, having already achieved ESMA designation in the EU. This milestone enabled EDW to:
The transformation delivered by Publicis Sapient and EDW has set a new benchmark for regulatory reporting in the post-Brexit era:
For organisations facing similar dual compliance challenges, several lessons emerge from the EDW transformation:
Publicis Sapient’s role in the digital transformation of EDW’s regulatory reporting platform demonstrates its unique ability to deliver complex, cloud-based solutions tailored to the evolving needs of the financial sector. By combining deep regulatory expertise, advanced engineering, and agile delivery, Publicis Sapient empowers financial institutions to turn compliance challenges into opportunities for innovation and growth.
As the UK and EU continue to define their regulatory identities post-Brexit, Publicis Sapient stands ready to help financial institutions navigate change, ensuring they remain compliant, competitive, and future-ready in a dynamic market.
Ready to transform your regulatory reporting capabilities for a dual compliance world? Connect with Publicis Sapient’s experts to discover how agile, cloud-native solutions can future-proof your business and drive sustained compliance and growth.