{
  "id": 16747641,
  "title": "British banks vulnerable after outsourcing AI to US tech giants, Bank of England finds",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/27/british-banks-vulnerable-after-outsourcing-ai-to-us-tech-giants-bank",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-27T12:28:15.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "City AM",
    "slug": "city-am",
    "url": "https://www.cityam.com/british-banks-vulnerable-after-outsourcing-ai-to-us-tech-giants-bank-of-england-finds/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "British banks are facing potential vulnerabilities due to their outsourced reliance on American technology firms for AI development, according to a new report from the Bank of England and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The research reveals that three major cloud computing providers account for 79 percent of reported supplier relationships among financial services firms, with over a third of those relationships deemed critical and difficult to replace. However, only 35 percent of these critical relationships have tested contingency plans for switching providers in case of disruption. The findings come as Britain faces increasing scrutiny over its dependence on US technology companies, following a recent Google Cloud outage that highlighted the risks of such reliance. The report also found that third-party providers manage 53 percent of systems considered highly important to operations, yet only 24 percent of firms have deep knowledge of their most critical third-party AI systems, relying instead on supplier assurances and contractual protections. Sebastien Marchon, CEO of fintech firm Rydoo, emphasized the need for firms to enhance their understanding of third-party AI systems to fully benefit from the technology and meet regulatory requirements. Despite 87 percent of UK financial services leaders believing AI will have a greater impact on the industry than the 1986 Big Bang reforms, a separate KPMG survey found that only 23 percent have a clear understanding of the third-party AI systems they employ. Integration difficulties, such as integrating AI into existing business processes, and outdated systems were cited as significant barriers. The FCA has previously warned that some financial firms lack adequate governance and human oversight when deploying AI, urging businesses to ensure senior managers remain accountable for the technology.",
  "summary": "British banks are becoming increasingly reliant on a handful of foreign tech giants to power their AI ambitions, new research from Bank of England and Financial Conduct Authority has revealed, raising concerns over the City’s dependence on overseas infrastructure. The three largest cloud computing providers account for 79 per cent of reported supplier relationships among [...]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}