Bank Of England: Minutes Of The London FXJSC Legal Sub Committee Meeting – 17 March 2026

Minutes

Minute 1: Welcome and apologies

The Chair (Sharon Blackman) opened the meeting, welcoming those online and in person.

Minute 2: Minutes of 24 November Legal Sub-Committee

The minutes of the meeting of 24 November 2025 were approved.

Minute 3: Look back / look forward: update on the regulatory framework impacting the FX market (Clifford Chance – Caroline Dawson)

EU Benchmarks Regulation (BMR) – FX

The discussion focused on the impact of BMR on FX benchmarks, particularly in relation to non-EU FX rates.

The original EU regime captured a broad range of benchmarks and sought to prevent people from evading regulation by using non-EU benchmarks. To achieve this, it prohibited the use of a benchmark unless its administrator appeared on the benchmark register.

This has created practical challenges for non-EU benchmark administrators qualifying under the third-country regime.

A transitional period has been in place due to these difficulties; however, despite repeated extensions, the regime has not yet been fully implemented.

The latest extension is due to expire at the end of this year, with limited appetite for further extensions.

The EU is instead moving towards a narrower scope:

• Regulation will apply only to a limited subset of benchmarks, including those that are critical, significant, climate-related, or one of the end-scope commodity benchmarks.
• Rather than reforming the third-country regime, the intention is to reduce its scope, though the eventual boundaries remain unclear.

A specific exemption regime is emerging, with a number of benchmarks proposed for exemption, limited to benchmarks not administered by central banks.

Overall the revised approach may provide greater certainty for EU market participants where non-EU benchmarks are not significant or are exempt.

UK approach:

• The UK intends to revert to a regime where regulators designate systemically important benchmarks.
• HMT is reviewing its designation framework, with only limited amendments expected.
• The current list of designated benchmarks is relatively narrow.

Stablecoins

The group noted the complexity of regulatory treatment of stablecoins and broader cryptoassets. Key issues include classification, regulatory perimeter, and how these assets integrate with existing financial market infrastructure.

The EU Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCAR) has focused on bringing cryptoassets within scope of regulation and distinguishing between those inside and outside existing financial instrument regimes.

Emphasis on categorisation and allocation of supervisory responsibilities.

UK approach:

• More targeted, with focus on systemic stablecoins.
• Stablecoins may be tested in environments such as the Digital Securities Sandbox.
• Legislative framework is still developing and may require further refinement.

It was noted that existing financial services legislation (in some cases dating back to the 1990s) may not adequately address digital assets.

Cross-jurisdictional legal opinions remain complex, particularly where multiple legal systems are engaged.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The FX market was identified as a potentially strong environment for AI deployment, given data availability and market structure.

Regulatory approaches:

• UK: AI treated as a tool, with existing regulatory obligations applying depending on use case.
• EU: under the AI Act, categorising uses of AI with requirements such as transparency where users interact with AI.

The key issues that were discussed were the practical implementation challenges under the EU AI Act, particularly in operationalising transparency and compliance requirements.

An FMLC paper on liability and the use of AI concluded that AI does not have legal agency; liability remains with human actors.

There are these ongoing discissions and the need to address broader risks, including:

• Cyber security
• Operational resilience (including over-reliance on AI)
• Data protection and intellectual property

Overall, while AI presents significant opportunities, regulatory clarity and practical implementation continue to evolve.

Minute 4: Topics for discussion at future meetings

• Competition Guidance (2018): Given the age of the current FXJSC guidance, it was agreed that it would be useful to review.
• ISDA Consultation:
  • This may require market participant outreach, particularly to clients with established MCA arrangements.
  • The issue is less about ISDA’s work itself and more about how the industry implements and operationalises changes.
• UK Cryptoasset Regulation: HMT is developing a framework introducing regulated activities for cryptoassets, including stablecoin issuance. FCA rules are expected in the summer, forming part of a broader regulatory package.
• Benchmarks Regulation Update: once more settled.

Minute 5: Any other business

Governance (Deputy Chair Appointment)

It was agreed to align the Legal Sub-Committee’s Terms of Reference with the Operations Sub-Committee in relation to a Deputy Chair role. The proposed Terms of Reference amendments have been circulated, and members were invited to provide any comments at the earliest opportunity.

Appointment process:

• One application has been received.
• The Chair’s intention is to proceed with confirming the applicant.

In the absence of comments, silence will be deemed approval, and the process will proceed accordingly.

Attendees

Legal Sub-Committee

Sharon Blackman (Chair, FXJSC Legal Sub-Committee) – Citigroup

David Harris – Financial Conduct Authority

Joanne Napleton - London Stock Exchange Group

Mayank Patel – Bank of America

Rakesh Shah – Standard Chartered

Rowland Stacey – Goldman Sachs

Simon Goldsworthy – Deutsche Bank

Tamsin Rolls – JP Morgan Chase

Stephanie Cayer – NatWest Markets

Harkamal Singh Attwal - HSBC

FXJSC Legal Sub-Committee Secretariat

Carly Jones – Bank of England

Matthew Hartley – Bank of England

Sakshi Gupta – Bank of England

Guest attendees

Caroline Dawson - Clifford Chance

Apologies

Gaynor Wood – CLS

Krisha Somaiya – UBS

Nimisha Kanabar - Morgan Stanley

Sunil Samani - XTX Markets