Global Trustee and Fiduciary Services Bite-Sized Issue 2 2026

7 QUICK LINKS AIFMD BENCHMARKS REGULATION CRYPTOASSETS FINTECH FUND LIQUIDITY MIFID II/MIFIR MONEY MARKET FUNDS OPERATIONAL RESILIENCE SUSTAINABLE FINANCE/ESG T+1 ASIA PACIFIC EUROPE NORTH AMERICA UNITED KINGDOM Global Trustee and Fiduciary Services Bite-Sized | Issue 2 | 2026 OPERATIONAL RESILIENCE Bank of England Publish 2025 CBEST Thematic On 20 January 2026, the Bank of England (BoE) published the 2025CBEST Thematic, which presents insights derived from recent Critical National Infrastructure Banking Supervision and Evaluation Testing (CBEST) assessments conducted across firms and financial market infrastructures (FMIs). The BoE said the publication does not introduce any new or additional regulatory expectations. Rather, it articulates gaps, some of them foundational, observed in firms’ and FMIs’ cyber defences. This includes new findings on commonly seen threat tactics, techniques, and procedures, alongside practical considerations for remedial and resilience planning. The BoE went on to say the technical observations in the review reinforce the importance of strengthening cyber defences across people, process, and technology ensuring cyber practices that support operational resilience. The key messages for firms and FMIs to consider include: 1. To reduce the likelihood of severe cyberattacks, firms and FMIs should look to harden operating systems, including by patching vulnerabilities and securely configuring key applications; 2. Firms and FMIs can reduce the impact of unauthorised access to sensitive systems and information by strengthening credentials management, enforcing strong passwords, considering the use of multi-factor authentication, preventing or detecting insecure credential storage, and through appropriate segmentation of networks; 3. Early detection and effective monitoring, alerting and response processes are key to reducing the impact from cyberattacks; and 4. Firms and FMIs should implement risk-based remediation plans with oversight from risk managers and internal auditors to ensure the successful remediation of technical findings, including vulnerabilities. Link to Report here SUSTAINABLE FINANCE/ESG Cross Agency Steering Group Announces Strategic Priorities for 2026-2028 On 29 January 2026, the Green and Sustainable Finance Cross Agency Steering Group (Steering Group) convened its 12th meeting, setting out its strategic priorities for 2026-2028 to further strengthen Hong Kong’s role as a competitive and future ready sustainable finance centre. The Steering Group said that, building on the solid foundation of the 2023-2025 plan, its strategic priorities for the next three years would be anchored around two key pillars: 1. Consolidate and strengthen efforts to solidify Hong Kong as a sustainable finance centre • Strengthening the sustainability disclosure ecosystem, including sustainability assurance, supporting high-quality transition plan disclosure, and the effective use of technology. • Expanding and deepening sustainable finance markets through facilitating sustainable capital flows through Hong Kong and strengthening cross border carbon market collaboration. • Strengthening external engagement via events and participation in global dialogues. • Supporting talent development through capacity building initiatives. 2. Develop Hong Kong’s strengths in emerging areas • Scaling transition finance with practical guidance, enabling tools and case studies, while encouraging wider industry adoption of transition planning. • Supporting adaptation finance by building market readiness, identifying capability gaps, and supporting product innovation and development, while strengthening physical risk assessment capabilities.