UK TO REGULATE MAJOR CLOUD PROVIDERS AS CRITICAL FINANCIAL SUPPLIERS

The British government designated Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Oracle as "critical third-party" suppliers to the financial sector, according to Reuters. The designation brings major cloud-service providers under direct regulatory oversight because banks, insurers and market-infrastructure firms rely on them for services that could affect financial stability if disrupted.

Reuters reported that the oversight begins July 13 and will be carried out jointly by the Bank of England, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority. The companies named in the designation are Microsoft Ireland Operations Ltd, Google Cloud EMEA Ltd, Amazon Web Services EMEA SARL and Oracle Corporation UK Ltd, according to Reuters.

The new framework is designed to reduce systemic risk from technology outages, cyberattacks or operational failures affecting firms used across the financial system, according to Reuters. The Guardian reported that the providers support services including data storage, fraud detection and digital banking operations, making disruption at a major cloud provider a possible financial-stability issue.

Under the designation, the providers will face requirements including resilience testing, regular self-assessments and mandatory reporting of significant incidents, according to Reuters. The Financial Times reported that regulators will be able to impose stronger disclosure and scenario-testing expectations for services judged to be systemic.

The move follows years of concern about financial firms' dependence on a small number of global technology providers. The Guardian reported that a 2025 Amazon Web Services outage disrupted more than 2,000 businesses, including banks, and that a Treasury committee review had also highlighted recurring IT failures across UK banks between 2023 and 2025.

The Financial Times reported that the UK approach is narrower than the European Union's comparable system, which designated 19 technology firms in 2025. Britain's framework gives regulators direct oversight only of services considered critical to the financial sector, while financial firms remain responsible for managing their own third-party risks.

Reuters reported that Google Cloud expressed support for the UK framework, saying it could strengthen resilience and trust across the financial ecosystem. The Financial Times reported that all four companies pledged cooperation with the oversight regime.

The designation also reflects the growing role of artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure in finance. The Financial Times reported that UK officials are watching technology dependency more closely as banks and financial firms expand AI use, and that the Treasury indicated more companies could be added to the framework in future.

The immediate question is how regulators apply the new powers once oversight begins. Banks, insurers, market firms and cloud providers will be watching the first supervisory requirements, the scope of incident reporting and whether additional technology or AI providers are later designated as critical to the financial system.

Fact-check date: 10 July 2026
Article type: News
Sources: Reuters, The Guardian, Financial Times, UK Treasury and financial-regulator reporting