AI firm Palantir can now access UK's financial data
What's the story
Palantir, a US-based artificial intelligence (AI) company, has been awarded a contract by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The deal will give Palantir access to highly sensitive internal intelligence data held by the FCA. The move is part of an effort to combat financial crimes such as fraud and money laundering. The three-month trial comes with a payment of over £30,000 per week for analyzing FCA's extensive "data lake."
Analysis
Foundry to analyze sensitive case intelligence files
Palantir will use its AI system, Foundry, to analyze massive amounts of data held by the FCA. This includes highly sensitive case intelligence files, information on problematic firms, reports from lenders about proven and suspected frauds, and public data such as consumer complaints to the financial ombudsman. The deal has raised concerns over privacy as it involves analyzing recordings of phone calls, emails and social media posts.
Privacy fears
Deal raises ethical questions for FCA
The deal has raised privacy concerns within the FCA. Speaking to Guardian, one source questioned Palantir's ethical reliability in sharing information about money-laundering threats. The company has been criticized for its technology being used by the Israeli military and in US President's ICE immigration crackdown. In 2023, it signed a £330 million deal with NHS, which faced resistance from doctors, and a £240 million contract with Ministry of Defence in December 2025 amid allegations of human rights violations against Palantir.
Data security
FCA clarifies data handling protocol
The FCA has clarified that under the terms of this contract, Palantir will act as a "data processor" and not a "data controller." This means it can only act on instructions from the regulator. The FCA will keep exclusive control over encryption keys for the most sensitive files, with data hosted and stored only in the UK. Palantir will have to destroy data after contract completion, with any intellectual property derived from this process retained by FCA.