✦ RESEARCH INITIATIVE 2025-26

The Future of AI Governance & Compliance in Financial Services

A research initiative exploring how AI is reshaping governance, oversight and accountability across financial services.

Overview

Existing governance frameworks were largely developed for static systems rather than adaptive AI.

As the operational embedding of AI use cases increases across financial services - including the emergence of more agentic workflows - questions are arising about whether current approaches to oversight and accountability remain fit for purpose.

This research explores the future direction of AI governance and compliance in financial services.

Focus areas. We are exploring the intersection of technology, regulation, and organizational design.

AI adoption

Where and how financial institutions are deploying AI - and what’s accelerating or slowing adoption.

The impact of AI

How AI is reshaping day-to-day compliance and risk work, and the capabilities organisations now need.

Governance readiness

How institutions are adapting their governance frameworks today to manage emerging AI systems and regulatory expectations.

The future of AI governance

The shifts, uncertainties, and longer-term questions that will shape AI governance over the next 5 years.

How we're approaching the research

Qualitative interviews

Interviews with senior leaders in compliance, risk, model governance and AI strategy across UK and EU financial institutions.

Evidence-based

Drawing on AI usage surveys, emerging capabilities, benchmarks, and publicly available sector-level evidence.

Academic input

Independent expertise spanning AI governance, financial system risk and technology law, grounding the research in rigorous analysis.

Vendor neutral

Focused on sector-wide insights rather than product-specific considerations, supported by indepdendent contributors.

Contributors

This research initiative is co-ordinated by Zango, and supported by independent contributors specialising in AI governance, financial-system risk, and technology law.

Sam Green

Lead author

Leading Zango’s policy and partnerships work, including this research initiative.

Previously Policy Team Leader in the UK Government's AI Regulation Unit, and served as Head of Transparency in the Security & Online Harms Directorate, overseeing regulatory reporting, audits and compliance work.

Dean Nash

Advisor

Brings deep experience at the intersection of legal operations, technology transformation, and regulatory risk.  

Dean is Global Chief Operating Officer (Legal) at Santander, where he oversees legal operations across one of the world’s largest banking groups. He previously held senior roles within global banks and high-growth fintechs.

Andrew Sutton

Contributor

Focused on AI governance and financial-system risk, including ways in which frontier AI may cause aspects of the financial system to fail.

Andrew is a Research Affiliate at the Oxford Martin School AI Governance Initiative and affiliated with the Centre for the Governance of AI (GovAI).

Dr Alessio Azzutti

Contributor

Interdisciplinary scholar at the intersection of law, finance, and emerging technologies - with a focus on AI governance.

Lecturer in Law & Technology at the University of Glasgow, Co-Investigator in the Innovate UK–funded Financial Regulation Innovation Lab, and Managing General Editor of theBanking & Finance Law Review.

Research timelines. Key stages in the delivery of this research programme.

Nov 2025

Research framework defined

Dec 2025

Qualitative interviews

Feb 2026

Evidence review & sector analysis

Feb 2026

Thematic insights developed

Mar 2026

Expert validation & peer review

Mar 2026

Report production

Apr 2026

Publication & roundtable discussions