EPISODE 253- Regulating at the Speed of AI: UK Financial Conduct Authority's Head of Innovation Colin Payne on Governing AI

Colin Payne is the Head of Innovation at the Financial Conduct Authority, the UK's financial regulator, where he is building the frameworks and platforms that will define the next decade of global finance. With over two decades at the cutting edge of fintech, he has worked with startups, unicorns, central banks, and regulators across the world to turn bold ideas into real financial products without ever compromising consumer protection. He leads the FCA's regulatory innovation team, running programmes like the Supercharged Sandbox and the Smart Data Accelerator that give companies a safe space to test the future of finance under real regulatory conditions. He also chairs the Global Financial Innovation Network, bringing together regulators from around the world to align on how new technologies like AI, digital assets, and open banking should be governed. He is one of the rare people who genuinely believes that regulation and innovation are not opposites, and has spent his career proving it. On The Menu:AI, data, and tokenization reshaping finance FCA flexibility for fast-moving technology evolutionWhat regulatory credibility looks like globallyTransparency, traceability, and human oversight over machines Companies compress development from years to months Trust money without understanding the mechanicsCompute and expert guidance compress development