Published on
17 August 2026
Reporting costs are rising post-implementation. Discover why data quality, governance and managed services are reshaping regulatory reporting operating models.
For years, regulatory reporting has been defined by wave after wave of reform. Today, however, many firms face a different challenge: not implementing new regulations but operating existing reporting frameworks more efficiently and at lower cost. Our recent article, The Rising Cost of Trade and Transaction Reporting – and Why Firms Need a New Operating Model, explored how the economics of regulatory reporting are evolving and why firms need to rethink their reporting operating models.
Delta Capita recently hosted an industry roundtable, which brought together senior practitioners from across the buy side, sell side and industry utilities to discuss what this evolution might look like. The discussion revealed a market increasingly focused on operational efficiency, data quality and long-term sustainability rather than regulatory implementation alone.
The Real Cost of Reporting
One theme stood out immediately: reporting costs have changed.
Repository fees and reporting technology are no longer the primary expense. Instead, firms are spending heavily on data management, governance, exception handling, controls and regulatory oversight. Only 20% of roundtable respondents felt their reporting costs were currently under control, underlining the challenge many organisations continue to face.
What has become clear is that the biggest costs now emerge after implementation. Regulatory reporting has evolved into a permanent operational function, requiring ongoing investment in controls, assurance and governance.
Data Quality Is the New Battleground
If compliance programmes defined the last decade, data quality is likely to define the next.
Many firms acknowledged that fragmented architectures and tactical solutions, often built under tight implementation deadlines, have left them with a costly legacy. Significant resources are now dedicated to investigating breaks, reconciling data and correcting issues after reporting has taken place.
The discussion highlighted a growing consensus that firms can no longer rely on downstream fixes. The greatest opportunity to reduce cost lies in preventing errors at source through stronger data ownership, clearer lineage and better controls embedded earlier in the reporting process.
Importantly, data quality is no longer viewed as solely a reporting issue. It has become a broader enterprise data governance challenge.
A Chance to Reset
While the pace of major regulatory reform has slowed, participants viewed the current period as an opportunity rather than a pause.
After years of regulatory delivery programmes, many firms are now focused on simplifying reporting architectures, reducing technical debt and building more adaptable operating models. The goal is straightforward: make future regulatory change less disruptive and less expensive.
There was also strong support for more proactive regulatory horizon scanning. Firms increasingly want earlier visibility of upcoming changes so they can plan investments strategically rather than relying on costly last-minute remediation.
AI: Practical Rather Than Transformational
Artificial intelligence generated lively discussion, but the mood was pragmatic.
Adoption remains cautious. While many firms are exploring AI, relatively few have moved into production. Current use cases are focused on improving operational efficiency through activities such as investigations, reconciliations, regulatory research and documentation support.
Participants were clear that AI is unlikely to remove the need for experienced regulatory specialists. In highly regulated environments, accountability, explainability and human judgement remain essential. Instead, AI is expected to augment teams by reducing manual effort and allowing experts to focus on higher-value activities.
As several participants noted, AI is only as effective as the data that supports it, once again reinforcing the importance of strong data foundations.
Vendors Are Becoming Operating Partners
Expectations of technology providers are evolving too.
Regulatory coverage and connectivity are now largely expected. Increasingly, firms are looking for partners that can help improve reporting quality, simplify regulatory change and reduce operational complexity.
Managed services and utility-based models featured prominently in the discussion, offering firms access to specialist expertise while allowing internal teams to focus on governance and oversight. The emphasis is shifting from software alone to broader operating support and measurable business outcomes. Thinking more flexibly and holistically about reporting models can improve cost efficiency whilst maintaining the resilience, scalability and niche skill set needed to manage evolving reporting requirements.
Looking Ahead
The roundtable highlighted an industry entering a new stage of maturity. The question is no longer simply how to comply, but how to do so efficiently, sustainably and at scale.
For many firms, the path to lower reporting costs will not come from reporting technology alone. It will come from better data, simpler operating models and stronger governance. Those that address these foundations now are likely to be in the strongest position as regulatory expectations continue to evolve.
Author: Geev Vasan, Business Development Product Manager, Report Hub
