Lines of Thought

From principles to kill switches: finance AI rulebooks

How are financial regulators turning high-level AI principles into enforceable controls?

Financial regulators started with principles and sandboxes, but by 2026 India, Singapore and the US were writing concrete expectations on inventories, model validation, vendor accountability and kill switches. India shows the full arc from a principles report to draft model-risk rules and promised SEBI controls.

  1. Rule · In forceIN
    RBI FREE-AI Framework

    FREE-AI's 7 sutras and 26 recommendations set India's baseline for AI in finance.

  2. ReportFinanceIN
    RBI publishes FREE-AI framework for AI in India's financial sector

    The RBI publishes the framework and starts the shift from principles to supervision.

  3. Rule changeFinanceSG
    MAS consults on AI risk management guidelines for all financial institutions

    Singapore proposes inventories, risk materiality ratings and lifecycle controls, including for AI agents.

  4. PolicyFinanceUS
    US Treasury releases AI lexicon and finance-specific AI risk framework

    The US opts for a voluntary finance-specific version of the NIST AI RMF instead of binding rules.

  5. ProgrammeFinanceGB
    FCA names Barclays, UBS, Experian and others in second AI Live Testing cohort

    The UK tests AI, including agentic payments, live with firms before setting expectations.

  6. Rule changeFinanceIN
    RBI drafts model risk rules covering AI/ML for all regulated lenders

    The RBI drafts model-risk rules covering third-party and AI/ML models.

  7. Rule · In forceIN
    SEBI Reg 16C (AI responsibility)

    SEBI already makes intermediaries liable for the AI tools they use.

  8. StatementFinanceIN
    SEBI chief says AI/ML rules will mandate kill switches and human oversight

    SEBI signals mandatory kill switches and human oversight for AI in markets.

  9. Country
    India

    India now has two financial regulators moving in parallel toward hard AI controls.

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