Meeco joins RegTech Association of Australia
In the past weeks we have experienced a tectonic shift in our global societal, health and financial priorities. Now more than ever we need to be connected with access to data we can rely on and trust. History has shown us that at times of national emergency, personal rights and freedoms are often traded for the greater good. Whilst these measures may be appropriate in the eye of the storm, society is often left with the legacy of less than optimal freedoms when life becomes more stable.
One of the tools we have at our disposal is the rise of RegTech; specifically, the ability to implement greater monitoring, governance and separation of concerns that can help society balance between what we need to know, and the hard-fought freedoms of global citizens.
“This is a golden age for the RegTech opportunity. There’s unprecedented focus on RegTech, the fines for regulatory non-compliance are growing and there’s prediction that globally the industry will spend in excess of $127 billion by 2024.” – Deborah Young, Welcome to 2020 address
Through and post COVID-19, the impact of increasing and tighter regulations on personal data and individual’s data rights, will be felt more and more in terms of the cost of compliance implementation or the consequences of non-compliance fines. Enterprises and organisations can choose to offset these costs by turning compliance into an operating model innovation opportunity. This can be done in partnership with patients and customers by the application of intelligent technology when collecting and using personal data. This is at the heart of Meeco’s value proposition. It also sits at the heart of our commitment to collaboration, industry solutions and co-operative eco-systems.
Since our launch in 2014, Meeco has strongly identified with the growing need for orderly, structured and controlled personal data management.
As an award-winning pioneer in this field, Meeco has always been closely connected to the issues involved in personal data rights and the way in which they can be managed, in step with growing host of regulatory measures.
This is particularly true for consent and permission management, and equally for personal data security and fraud management.
Meeco’s API-of-Me¹ platform allows organisations to help their customers create secure ways to collect, share and manage their personal data. The added benefit of Meeco’s secure data enclaves is that it also alleviates many of the compliance and cost burdens of regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation in Europe, Consumer Data Rights regulation in Australia or the California Consumer Privacy Act, 2018 in the United States.
The immediate consequence of the expansion of this type of regulation is the increased protection of data rights and personal data for individuals. Whist these regulations may be aligned to other initiatives such as Open Banking, to enable better financial services decisions, the opportunities and benefits are as relevant in healthcare, education, transport and retail.
These are positive steps forward, particularly considering the sharp increase in mismanagement of personal data and increase in fraudulent activity that we have witnessed over the last few years. There are numerous examples of regulatory fines handed down to enterprises that have willingly or unwillingly mismanaged their customers personal data. Of note, just two of these events across 2018-19 resulted in fines of USD$5 billion imposed by the US Federal Trade Commission on Facebook following the Cambridge Analytica scandal in 2018, and USD$700 million settlement agreed in 2019 by Equifax subsequent to the mishandling of users’ personal information impacting 150 million customers in 2017.
Additional impacts of these new regulations are the substantial increased operational costs related to the compliant collection, storage and management of their customers’ personal data. Indeed, the rising need for risk management and compliance has fed an ever-increasing need for more and better-quality customer data.
This has fuelled the advent of RegTech, with market size estimates reaching as high as USD$55 billion by 2025, on the back of a CAGR of 52.8% between 2019 and 2025[1]. RegTech companies are providing businesses with applications and tools to remove human error, make better decisions and provide evidence of compliance. These valuable capabilities enable businesses to reduce cost and optimise operational processes without compromising compliance. But is this enough in a world of shrinking margins and diminishing trust?
We have seen a significant downturn over the past decade in consumer trust in the way large enterprises and digital platforms use and protect customer’s personal data. Compliance with regulations and the imposition of severe penalties for breach are now the baseline expectations of a public that has become increasingly aware of the value of their personal data, and the risk of its exposure. Clear evidence of this trend was already visible in 2017, when Deloitte found that “. . . consumers are less likely than ever to complete feedback surveys – thanks to privacy concerns”[2].
For too long businesses have used the personal data of their customers to their own advantage, whilst meeting the minimum acceptable compliance obligations. Customers deserve more from the businesses with whom they choose to transact. It’s time to look beyond compliance and provide innovative solutions that provide all stakeholders including customers the value and privacy they deserve.
At Meeco we believe in a world where people are empowered and equipped with the legal, business and technological tools to gain value from the use of their personal data. Meeco has been championing this cause since our founding manifesto. We see that businesses can use their compliance obligations as the basis for creating new opportunities for value generation. In fact, KPMG endorsed this same view in 2018 when it stated that “Through direct improvements and freeing resources, RegTech also has the potential to:
- Provide valuable business insight
- Provide customers with better and faster service
- Drive new products and services”[3].
To further this aim, Meeco has recently joined the RegTech Association². We believe that the compliance-based foundation of Meeco’s products makes us a great fit within this global community. Through this partnership we hope to contribute to the protection of personal data assets in compliance with the relevant regulations.
In January this year, members of the Meeco team had the privilege to attend a European Trade Mission lead by AusTrade which included Michelle East, the CEO of Certainty Compliance³ and member of the RegTech Advisory Committee. Michelle demonstrated first-hand her passion for helping raise the profile of the important role RegTech has in our changing technology landscape. Michelle’s commitment to developing a trusted eco-system, along with prior experience collaborating with Lisa Schutz were key motivating factor in Meeco’s decision to join the RegTech community.
The Australian RegTech organisation is headed up by its CEO Deborah Young, together with Alison Shapiera heading up engagement, supported by the experienced Board comprised of Julian Fenwick (Chair) and directors Lisa Schutz, Harold Lucero, Jasper Poos and Peter Deans.
On the decision to join the RegTech Association, Meeco’s CEO Katryna Dow said:
“We're very much looking forward to contributing to the RegTech community and sharing our experience from different parts of the world. We've been privileged to work with organisations like KBC Bank in Belgium and Nexia Wealth in Australia, both great examples of businesses empowering their customers with innovative personal data management and compliance tools”.
KBC recently implemented a Privacy-by-Design solution which guarantees their customers complete privacy and control. Nexia Wealth provides their customers with a secure platform for sharing data and documents with trusted advisers.These are just some of the ways Meeco is helping organisations use compliance to be at the forefront of data innovation.
[1]Source: KPMG September 2018 -“There’s a revolution coming - Embracing the challenge of RegTech 3.0”
[2]Source: Deloitte September 2017 – Deloitte Insights
[3]Source: Grand View Research, Inc June 2019 - “RegTech Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Organization Size, By Application (Risk & Compliance Management, Identity Management), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2019 – 2025”
____________________________
¹ We have since updated our documentation. To view an archived copy click here.
² This website is no longer available. To view an archived copy click here.
³ This website is no longer available. To view an archived copy click here.
