The FCA and Bank of England have set up a new industry forum to explore the benefits and risks of using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in financial services.

The Financial Services AI Public Private Forum (AIPPF) will “explore means to support safe adoption of these technologies within financial services.”

The forum will also look at whether principles, guidance, regulation and/or industry good practice could support safe adoption of AI/ML. The forum could eventually lead to new regulations covering AI and ML.

The forum will seek to:

• Share information and understand the practical challenges of using AI and ML within financial services, as well as the barriers to deployment and potential risks
• Gather views on potential areas where principles, guidance or good practice examples could be useful in supporting safe adoption of these technologies
• Consider whether ongoing industry input could be useful and what form this could take

In a statement the FCA said: “The pursuit of artificial intelligence (AI) and use of machine learning (ML) are increasingly important fields of innovation in the financial services sector.

“In response to this and increasing data availability, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Bank of England (BoE) have committed to undertake work to better understand how these developments are driving change in financial markets, including business models, products, services and consumer engagement.”

In October, the FCA and the BoE published a report on the application of AI and ML in UK financial services.

Participation in the forum is at the invitation of the FCA and BoE.

The aim will be to involve the public and private sectors as well as academics and other experts.

The selection process is set out in the Terms of Reference.