Vera x FCA: The Supercharged Sandbox and Our New Regulatory Arc
Earlier this week, the FCA launched a new sandbox built for AI-native firms. Here's why Vera is stepping into it.
AI-led Consumer Debt Negotiation Infrastructure is no longer a theory — it’s entering the UK's regulatory bloodstream. With the FCA’s launch of a new Supercharged Sandbox, Vera is stepping into the arena it was built for: ethical AI infrastructure that redefines how institutions engage people in debt.
According to the FCA’s own framing, this new Supercharged Sandbox is designed for ‘shorter, faster’ three-month pilots in collaboration with ‘real-world firms,’ enabling early-stage innovations to demonstrate value in a controlled, data-rich environment. It signals a recognition that AI-native products need tailored spaces to validate impact, compliance, and public value simultaneously. Unlike the traditional sandbox, this environment focuses on generative AI applications in financial services and provides access to compute, synthetic data, and model oversight tools.
For founders building ethically, this new sandbox shortens the gap between idea and institution. For regulators, it’s a chance to shape tech before it scales. For citizens, it’s the promise of financial systems that finally speak their language.
What the FCA’s New Sandbox Really Means
This isn’t just a technical pivot. It signals a deeper cultural shift at the FCA — one that acknowledges the need to:
Fast-track AI innovation with purpose-built infrastructures
Increase public benefit and ethical alignment in financial services
Stress-test real use cases with focused 3-month proof-of-concept pilots
At Vera, our entire thesis has been built on this alignment: that AI can empower people in debt — not just extract from them.
Why This Is a Defining Moment for Vera
We’ve made the decision: Vera will be applying to this FCA supercharged sandbox. It’s the right move, and it couldn’t be better timed. This is Open Banking for AI, but with higher human stakes. It’s not just about access — it’s about power redistribution, real-time dignity, and algorithmic accountability. For the first time, consumer protection in the AI era is being shaped not through compliance retrofits, but through infrastructure co-design.
We’ve already built the infrastructure: proprietary relational AI trained specifically for debt negotiation and decoding financial harm. Not chatbot scripts or shallow NLP — but relational AI trained on the emotional, legal, and financial terrain of UK debt resolution.
We’ve developed custom GPTs to power regulatory engagement and pilot structuring. Unlike tools that simply digitize debt advice, track and record debt figures (budgeting apps) or replicate caseworker triage, Vera builds infrastructure — embedding. negotiation logic, legal precision, and AI-native explainability from the ground up
And we’ve prepared a category-defining use case around council tax debt, one of the UK’s most aggressive and least understood areas of consumer pressure
This test isn’t about “could we do this?” It’s about showing how fast, ethical AI-led financial negotiation can prevent escalation, stress, and systemic harm.
What This Looks Like in Real Life
Picture this: a single mother in Croydon opens a final demand letter from her local council. She’s behind on council tax — not because she’s reckless, but because she’s balancing zero-hour work, childcare, and the constant financial tightrope millions walk daily. The letter threatens bailiffs and court action. It’s written in legalese, urgency, and silence. No guidance. No empathy. No visible options.
Now imagine she doesn’t have to wait three weeks for a debt advice appointment. She doesn’t sit on hold for 40 minutes. She doesn’t rehearse how to explain her life to someone who might not understand.
Instead, she uploads the letter into Vera — at 11:23 p.m., after the kids are asleep.
Within minutes, Vera interprets the document, clarifies the terms, and outlines her options. It drafts a negotiation request in language that’s assertive, compliant, and calm. No shame. No performance. Just next steps.
This is what we’re testing in the FCA sandbox. It’s the UK’s first test of AI-driven, regulator-aligned debt negotiation infrastructure — not just fintech with a conscience, but infrastructure with teeth. Real-time clarity. 24/7 support. Dignity by design.
What We’ll Be Testing
We’re focusing our proof-of-concept on two things:
AI reading and interpreting debt letters — surfacing clarity, confidence, and next steps to the consumer
Smart negotiation pathways — automating options that avoid bailiffs, CCJs, and long-term harm
Our pilot will be run in collaboration with several councils, with whom we are actively engaging and finalizing letters of intent this month.
Why It Matters for the Whole Sector
Just as Open Banking became a global precedent, this supercharged sandbox could signal the future of AI-led consumer rights infrastructure. We intend to make it unavoidable.
For too long, ethical AI innovation has been slowed by institutional hesitation, lack of regulatory clarity, or absence of public-benefit testing frameworks. This is a call to build a system that doesn’t just process debt — it transforms the experience of it.
The FCA just unlocked a new lane. And we’re ready to lead in it — not just for ourselves, but for every founder, policy-maker, and technologist who knows AI can do more than maximize profits. It can maximize human dignity and financial confidence.
If you’re a council ready to pioneer debt negotiation that actually works for your residents — reach out. If you’re a policymaker, regulator, or impact investor looking to shape the future of consumer finance — we’re building that future now.
This isn’t just a pilot. It’s proof that regulation, technology, and human dignity don’t have to be in conflict — they can be co-designed.
Join us. Partner with us. Or simply watch what happens when AI finally works for the people.