FinTech Gate | Bloomberg Expands HQLA Solution to Middle East

In an exclusive interview with FinTech Gate, Leila Sadiq, Bloomberg’s Global Head of Enterprise Data Content, and Kate Lee, Bloomberg’s Head of Regulatory & Accounting Solutions, detail Bloomberg’s expansion of its High-Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA) solution in the Middle East.

The original article was published in Arabic by FinTech Gate and can be found here. What follows is the English Q&A version of that story.

How do you assess the importance of extending the High-Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA) solution to the UAE and Qatar, particularly as international banks increase their presence in the region?

Leila Sadiq: Extending Bloomberg’s High-Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA) solution to the UAE and Qatar is a strategic response to the region’s evolving financial landscape. As international banks deepen their footprint across the Middle East, particularly in the Gulf, regulatory compliance and liquidity management have become increasingly critical. 

Our expansion into these markets reflects both the growing sophistication of regional banking systems and the rising demand for robust, jurisdiction-specific tools that support Basel III and local regulatory requirements. This extension of the HQLA solution now covering 12 jurisdictions, demonstrates Bloomberg’s ongoing commitment to equipping financial institutions with the tools they need to navigate complex regulatory environments.

What are the primary challenges financial institutions currently face in complying with Basel III’s Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) requirements?

Kate Lee: One of the main compliance challenges with LCR requirements is reliable acquisition of complete and accurate data across global markets. This data can be hard for firms to track down because it requires a large number of inputs including security classification, liquidity and an understanding of cashflow projections. However, that is just step one. Once the data is acquired, firms must have an in-depth understanding of how that data needs to be applied throughout their systems to achieve compliance. Bloomberg’s Enterprise Regulatory Data team combines competency in deep regulatory and industry market expertise, regulatory thought leadership, data management as well as consistent rules-based analysis to support clients in addressing the challenge.

How does Bloomberg’s solution support local and international regulators and banks in ensuring accurate compliance?

Leila Sadiq: As international banks increase their presence in the Middle East, they rely on Bloomberg as a trusted partner to help establish and maintain robust compliance frameworks aligned with local regulatory requirements. Bloomberg’s Regulatory Data team conducts in-depth reviews of regulatory texts to ensure that the data provided is accurate, relevant, and aligned with jurisdiction-specific needs.

Crucially, Bloomberg actively engages with national regulators to gain clarity on interpretive issues and contributes thought leadership on practical compliance challenges. This collaborative approach strengthens the accuracy of our offerings and ensures that our solutions remain responsive to evolving regulatory expectations. The result is data firms can use to easily calculate their standardized credit risk capital requirements.

Do you believe that digital transformation within banks will accelerate compliance with regulatory standards such as Basel III?

Kate Lee: There is no doubt that banks and other financial institutions are looking to technology to automate compliance processes wherever possible. Bloomberg’s Regulatory Data Solutions, a business that has been growing and increasing capability for over ten years now, has always been built on the principle of fueling digital transformation within financial institutions. Ultimately, compliance solutions that provide consistent and defensible liquidity determinations enable banks to spend less time and resources on compliance activities and focus more on adding value to their businesses.

How are financial institutions leveraging the combination of FinTech and regulatory data solutions to enhance their operational efficiency?

Leila Sadiq: Developing quality content is clearly paramount, but it’s equally important to understand where, when, and how clients want to consume and apply that data. To support this, we’re intentional about making our regulatory data accessible through multiple delivery mechanisms, whether that’s file-based delivery, API integrations, or cloud-based solutions. We also ensure seamless integration with Bloomberg’s DL+ data management service, as well as third-party applications that rely on high-quality, timely data.

But it goes further than access and delivery. What we’re seeing now is a marked shift in how regulatory data is being used, not just in post-trade compliance or reporting, but increasingly in pre-trade and intra-trade decision-making. This expansion across the full trade lifecycle reflects a deeper recognition that regulatory data is not just about meeting obligations, it’s also about enabling operational strength, improving risk detection, and embedding resilience.

Does Bloomberg utilize artificial intelligence or machine learning to categorize liquid assets and analyze liquidity risk?

Leila Sadiq: At Bloomberg, we take great care to apply the right methodologies to the right problems—ensuring that every solution is built on a foundation of transparency, precision, and high-quality data. This disciplined approach is essential to delivering the accuracy and consistency that our clients depend on in complex, high-stakes environments.

For regulatory content, Bloomberg’s process relies upon a robust rules engine that capitalizes on our extensive data content. Descriptive, pricing, and credit data are combined to produce the bucketing and liquidity measurement indicators required for regulatory compliance. The result is a suite of four core datasets: HQLA Classification, 30-Day Stress Period Price Drop Metrics, Liquid & Readily Marketable, and Central Bank Eligibility.

On the other hand, our Liquidity Assessment Solution (LQA) is a prime example of our usage of machine learning. At a time when skepticism around AI (especially concerns about black-box models and explainability) was widespread, we committed to building a transparent and trustworthy solution. Our approach has consistently prioritized interpretability, enabling LQA to meet the stringent model governance standards of leading global banks and to earn recognition from regulators. Rather than chasing trends, Bloomberg applied machine learning to liquidity risk because it was the right tool for the problem, backed by rigorous data science and deep market insight. LQA continues to evolve through methodological innovation and client-driven feedback, remaining a benchmark for responsible and effective AI in financial markets.

How can these solutions support banks in the region in their drive towards greater digitalization and innovation?

Leila Sadiq: As banks in the region modernize their infrastructure, there is a growing need for integrated data and technology solutions that not only ensure compliance but also streamline internal processes. HQLA is a high quality dataset that fits within clients’ workflows whether that is on the Bloomberg Terminal or through an enterprise data feed, which can be delivered via SFTP, REST API or into data warehouses within the cloud environment. With these flexible delivery options, Bloomberg simplifies integration and helps firms to streamline manual operations.

Critically, having the right data infrastructure and the right content is not just an operational enhancement, it’s the bedrock of digital transformation. High-quality, trusted data enables scalable automation, and ensures that modernized systems deliver their full value. At Bloomberg, we focus on building this foundation for our clients, providing robust, accurate content designed for seamless adoption across the enterprise.

Given the regional expansion, how does Bloomberg balance local compliance requirements with those of international standards?

Kate Lee: Bloomberg doesn’t view local versus international compliance as an either/or challenge—it’s about ensuring alignment with global standards while adapting to local regulatory nuances. For example, while many jurisdictions adopt Basel-based frameworks, each often includes unique interpretations or adjustments that must be accounted for.

To address this, Bloomberg provides solutions that reflect both international regimes and local implementations. We currently support more than a dozen national versions of the Basel rules, with recent expansions to include the UAE, Qatar, and Switzerland. Our approach is to analyze each jurisdiction carefully and build content that meets specific regulatory requirements, without losing consistency across the broader global framework.

In markets where multiple regulations coexist, we take a holistic view to ensure that asset classifications and treatments are aligned across regimes. This consistency supports our clients in managing compliance more effectively and with greater confidence—whether operating domestically or across borders.

As Bloomberg expands its presence in the Middle East, what is the next step in enhancing its regulatory data solutions?

Kate Lee: Bloomberg continues to enhance its global regulatory data offerings, balancing solutions that serve a broad audience, such as our sanctions content, with those tailored to specific regional or national frameworks. Our goal is to understand our clients’ needs and build content that supports automation, transparency, and compliance.

In areas like tax and capital liquidity, we’re expanding jurisdictional coverage and actively collaborating with Middle Eastern clients to develop region-relevant solutions. Recently, we broadened our transaction tax dataset to cover 28 global regimes, adding seven key data points per regime—including tax rate, base, liable party, and rationale—to improve transparency and support tax-aware decision-making.

We’ve also launched a U.S. Tariff Impact dataset, offering a detailed view of entities affected by each U.S. tariff action. This empowers clients to assess exposure, adjust investment strategies, and manage supply chain risk more effectively. These enhancements reflect our commitment to delivering high-quality regulatory content that meets both global standards and local needs—especially in growth regions like the Middle East.