The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the UK has revealed the names of companies that successfully entered Cohort 4 of its regulatory sandbox. About 40 percent of the 29 companies that are part of the sandbox are using distributed ledger technology. The regulator announced only the details of 28 companies as one participant requested to remain anonymous. The sandbox is designed to help companies test their products and services in a live market with several regulations and consumer protection policies in place.

The regulator’s sandbox is a part of 2014’s “Innovate” initiative, which intends to promote market competition. The program has helped 500 firms out of the 1,200 applications they received. It was also the first initiative of its kind.

The executive director of Strategy and Competition at the FCA, Christopher Woolard, said:

“I am pleased to say that this is the largest sandbox cohort to date with a record number of applicants meeting our eligibility criteria.”

He noted that Cohort 4 had seen a larger influx of companies testing wholesale propositions, including several firms aiming to improve the process of raising capital. He added:

“Alongside these we can see significant use of distributed ledger technology (DLT), some experimentation with crypto assets which will help inform our policy work and propositions aimed at helping lower-income consumers.”

The FCA received 69 applications for Cohort 4 but proceeded with 29 firms in travel insurance, automated advice, consumer credit and other sectors. The number of applications has increased since last year. Twenty-seven percent of the companies accepted into the cohort are operating in the wholesale industry. Forty percent of the firms are using DLT in their business. Out of these, six firms are using the technology in automating equity or debt issuance, while two are engaged in the insurance sector.

The regulator also revealed that it had accepted a small number of firms that deal in crypto assets. In the announcement, the firm wrote:

“We are keen to explore whether, in a controlled environment, consumer benefits can be delivered while effectively managing the associated risks.”

The prominent DLT companies included in the cohort are BlockEx, a platform facilitating bond issuance and managing lifecycle of bonds using DLT, and Capexmove, a platform that uses DLT for issuing tokenized debt. Etherisc, a company that uses smart contracts to provide flight delay insurance, and Finequia, a company offering bond and equity issuance on blockchain, are also a part of the initiative. Other DLT entities on the list are Natwest, TokenMarket, Tokencard, Universal Tokens, World Reserve Trust and 20|30.

Applications for Cohort 5 will open later this year.

UK FCA Reveals Names of Firms in Cohort 4 of Its Regulatory Sandbox was originally found on [blokt] - Blockchain, Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News.

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