'Critical third parties': UK puts Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Oracle under financial oversight

The UK government on Friday designated Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Oracle as “critical third parties”, bringing their cloud service operations under direct regulatory oversight to safeguard the country’s financial system.The designation, which takes effect on July 13, covers Microsoft Ireland Operations Ltd, Google Cloud EMEA Ltd, Amazon Web Services EMEA SARL and Oracle Corporation UK Ltd.The move comes as banks, insurers and financial market infrastructure firms become increasingly dependent on cloud computing services.“As banks, insurers and financial market infrastructures become increasingly reliant on cloud services, disruption at a major supplier could affect multiple firms at the same time, potentially impacting services customers depend on,” the UK government said in a statement.Under the new framework, the designated cloud providers will be subject to direct regulatory oversight aimed at reducing risks to the UK’s financial stability and ensuring the resilience of critical financial services.