Speech by Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight, delivered at the Spring Conference of NYU’s Program on Corporate Compliance and Enforcement. Speaker: Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversightEvent:NYU’s Program on Corporate Compliance and Enforcement Spring ConferenceDelivered:11 April 2025Note: this is the speech as drafted and may differ from the delivered versionKey messages:The FCA has a strong, productive history of working with partner agencies in the US, and we will continue to do so.Our enforcement action is about deterrence. Action to deter misconduct needs to be timely and visible.Our enforcement priorities for the next five years are about keeping dirty money out of the financial ecosystem, cracking down on regulated firms being used as vehicles for fraud, and protecting the integrity of UK markets.IntroductionIt’s so wonderful to be here on this beautiful campus in one of my favourite cities in the world.I see that April is Reunion season here at NYU Law. ‘Reunion ’25’ is celebrating the grad classes from every five years from 1975 to 2020.It’s in that spirit of reunions – of old friends and colleagues catching up – that I speak to you here today.Being in New York this week got me thinking about one of my first times coming to the US as part of my job at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).Some of you will remember the global conduct scandals around rate rigging of LIBOR and FX, over 10 years ago now.Multiple international institutions were under investigation for their role.The scale and international nature of the misconduct was unprecedented, and an unprecedented international response was required.As we all know, those cases ended with multi-billion dollar fines and multiple prosecutions on both sides of the Atlantic.Achieving that required international co-operation and co-ordination on a scale that was simply different to anything I had seen before.Now a decade later, I’m here with you again to talk about the importance of our working relationship.And how together, different people, from different backgrounds, but with a common purpose, can combat the complex challenges facing both of our countries today.Change and new challengesLast summer, the UK had a change of government and ruling party – the first in 14 years.From day one, the new government has made economic growth its biggest priority.And it has made clear that every regulator in the UK has its part to play – perhaps none greater than the FCA.As I said, this is a reunion, so let me catch you up on what we’re doing – and what we are prioritising.A few weeks ago, the FCA launched its new 5-year strategy to take us to 2030. We committed to being a smarter regulator, supporting growth and innovation, helping consumers, and fighting crime.To fight financial crime we will act with pace to stop harm, disrupt criminals, and back firms to be an effective line of defence.That’s where our Enforcement team come in.Increased pace, focus and transparencyEnforcement is all about deterrence.We are speeding up our investigations, doing fewer investigations faster.Five recent investigations achieved an outcome in 16 months or less, compared to a prior average of 42 months.Which means we are better placed to tell the story of what we are doing than ever before. Because to deter bad actors, we need to trumpet the value and impact of our work.Enforcement needs to be loud and in your face.London as an international financial centreHigh standards of regulation, including effective enforcement, are a crucial part of what makes London such a successful international financial centre.We’re world-leading in commercial insurance, derivatives, debt issuance, foreign exchange and commodities trading.Our asset management and fintech sectors are second in size only to the US.Many, if not all, of the US firms you represent have a London footprint.Some will have entities that are directly authorised and regulated by us.Others will have trading operations that participate in UK markets.The way we regulate and enforce in London matters to all of you.Our areas of focusWhat are the areas that you need to have on your radar?Well, in a nutshell, here are the things we care about:Keeping dirty money out of the financial ecosystem.Taking swift action where we see regulated firms being used as vehicles for fraud.Keeping our markets clean.Developing a safe crypto regime that protects consumers.The first theme of keeping dirty money out of the financial ecosystem is a huge priority for us and firms have a critical role to play through their anti-money laundering systems and controls.We have a strong track record of taking forceful action where we identify shortcomings in this area.We successfully prosecuted NatWest, one of the UK’s largest banks, for a catalogue of failings in the way it monitored and scrutinised a series of transactions, with one customer depositing £365m (US$468m) with NatWest, a substantial proportion of which was actual dirty money deposited in bags of cash at its branches. NatWest was slapped with a £264m (US$338m) fine for its offences.We fined Santander £107.7m (US$137.3m) for failing to adequately manage the money laundering risks posed by its Business Banking customers. This included failing to obtain sufficient information to understand the nature of a customer’s business, inadequate verification of whether customers in fact carried on that business, and the absence of an effective framework for ongoing customer monitoring.And we have continued to take action against firms for failings including:Firms growing rapidly but their anti-money laundering and sanctions screening controls falling behind.Firms failing to act promptly to rectify known defects in their transaction monitoring systems.Firms performing inadequate customer due diligence and deploying flawed customer and country risk rating methodologies.Keeping dirty money out of the financial ecosystem means maintaining high standards, proactive monitoring, and relying on international collaboration and digital tools.That’s how we create a fair, transparent and trustworthy environment for financial services.Technology will be a gamechanger for firms when it comes to their controls, as well as supporting our detection efforts.There are plenty of smart fintech solutions in development that we are watching with interest and which we will support through our Innovation Hub.We also want to make sure that regulation is appropriately risk-based, so that industry can calibrate its efforts effectively. And we are interested to understand how digital ID could support enhanced verification methods.We have an open mind in exploring these issues. But in the meantime, we continue to spend considerable resource and effort in policing this important area and we will continue to do so.Let me move to my second theme. It’s no surprise, is it, that we see fraud as a major priority?We will not tolerate fraud by regulated firms. Simple as that.The trust and confidence of consumers and investors in regulated firms is critical to the UK growth story.As well as being a regulator, we are also a criminal prosecutor, and we have record levels of prosecutions underway.Through our fraud practice, we close firms down, hold to account those who have betrayed their customers’ trust, secure long prison sentences and ensure that criminals do not retain one cent of their ill-gotten gains.We prioritise redress for victims. The wheels of English justice can sometimes turn slowly, but we do all we can so that they grind exceedingly fine.But fraudsters operate in a wider ecosystem. They tend to have bank accounts.I have just been speaking about our focus on anti-money laundering systems and controls.An important aspect of that is having systems in place that can identify the indicia of fraud.I hope your firms and clients have robust anti-fraud controls in place. If you provide banking for fraudsters, we will scrutinise those controls with care.That third theme of market integrity weighs on my mind a lot. The integrity of our markets is vital, not just equity markets but across the full range of Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities where the UK occupies an enviable global position.We are all familiar with the way insider dealing and market manipulation can knock confidence in our markets. We continue to be very active in this space.And there’s no escaping the growing threat posed by organised crime groups (OCGs) or OCGs infiltrating global markets.Firms have an important role to play in keeping markets clean; they need to be vigilant in detecting signs of criminality.Firms need to have the right systems and controls in place to catch those transactions that raise suspicions or warrant further analysis.And we keep a close eye on the effectiveness of those controls, with a steady stream of enforcement outcomes to ensure high standards of transaction reporting are met. Firms should have zero tolerance for market abuse.And that takes me into the final theme I want to call out: crypto.We want to develop a safe, competitive and sustainable crypto sector in the UK. One that allows for innovation and is underpinned by market integrity and consumer trust.We are engaging with government, industry, consumers and our regulatory partners to help get the future rules right.We currently regulate firms for anti-money laundering purposes and crypto financial promotions. Regulation in the UK is limited right now, but we have used our existing powers to encourage the industry to develop strong consumer standards that better protect people.For example, we have used our existing powers to keep firms that are unable to meet the minimum standards for preventing financial crime out of the UK. As of February of this year, only 50 out of 351 firms have met our standards to be registered.We’re helping UK consumers protect themselves against unfair or misleading crypto financial promotions. During the first year of our financial promotion regime, from October 2023–October 2024, we issued 1,700 consumer alerts related to firms illegally promoting cryptoassets. 56 apps were removed from UK app stores; and over 900 crypto-related scam websites were taken down.Last July, we took enforcement action against part of the Coinbase Group. That Coinbase entity onboarded many thousands of high risk customers, despite the fact we had imposed formal restrictions to prevent it from doing exactly that. Funds deposited by those customers were used to execute multiple cryptoasset transactions through other Coinbase Group entities, totalling around US$226m.These failings increased the risk that criminals could use part of the Coinbase Group to launder the proceeds of crime. As I said at the time, we will not tolerate such laxity which jeopardises the integrity of our markets.The FCA’s international workI hope the fact I’m here today in person to relay this message drives home how much we at the FCA value our working relationships with US partners.This has always been the case. It will continue to be now and in the years ahead.Because experience has taught us that international co-operation is mutually beneficial. We cannot progress some of our cases without your help, and you cannot progress some of yours without ours.So, it’s in all our interests for us to offer and accept help in pursuit of our common goals.Much of the misconduct we see is cross-border, with perpetrators and victims scattered around the globe. That’s particularly true of online frauds and scams.We have the track record to prove that this international collaboration works.A recent example is the long-running story of corruption, non-existent fishing boats in Mozambique and multiple regulatory and law enforcement interventions here, in the UK and Switzerland, known as “tuna bonds”. We reached a global settlement with Credit Suisse worth around US$475m in respect of corruption in Mozambique. It was a complex case, and what happened as a result had profound consequences for the people of Mozambique.The impact of tainted transactions included a debt crisis, financial turmoil and economic harm for ordinary people.In the UK, we discounted our penalty in light of Credit Suisse’s agreement to forgive US$200m of debt owed by the Republic of Mozambique because of these tainted loans.Mozambique also brought proceedings against Credit Suisse and other parties in the English Courts.The proceedings in the English High Court were resolved in July 2024 with several settlements (including by Credit Suisse group companies) and a judgment awarding over US$2 billion in Mozambique’s favour against the Privinvest Group.There is a final chapter in this story. Earlier this year, the FCA banned two managing directors from Credit Suisse from working in the UK financial sector. Their names were Andrew Pearse and Surjan Singh. Both had pleaded guilty to money laundering and accepting kickbacks. Both had been convicted here in the US for arranging corrupt loans to the Republic of Mozambique.This is a good example of how our work benefits from international cooperation. It shows that we are not scared of a fight, that we will act where harm has occurred outside the UK but that impacts the UK, and when it is the right thing to do.Our enforcement action isn’t just about firms, it’s also about individual accountability and responsibility.It is important that senior leaders at the firms we regulate are open, transparent and honest with us, and are held to account where their actions, or indeed their failure to act, results in harm.Let me give you an example. We decided to prohibit Jes Staley, who you may know from his days leading JP Morgan before he joined Barclays as CEO, from being a senior manager at any firm authorised by us. We say that Mr Staley recklessly misled the FCA regarding the nature of his relationship and dealings with Mr Epstein. Whilst we are awaiting the Tribunal’s decision, it is a case that highlights the premium the FCA places on the integrity of senior individuals.ConclusionI’ve spoken about some big ideas. And some big challenges.What’s clear to me, and I hope to you now too, is no one country or state agency can tackle these complex problems alone.It has never been more important for us to fall back on and trust our longstanding friendship.It makes me think again of the alumni of NYU Law getting back together in a few weeks for their reunions, trading memories and war stories.I think of our strong relationships with US agencies in the same way. Life-long friends, bonded by hard work and mutual respect, tested by tough cases.Understanding that we all stand a better chance to achieve our goals by helping one another out, as all good friends do.

The FCA has already proposed a simpler and flexible system which is tailored to the UK to replace current rules, introduced across Europe when the UK was in the EU. Today, the FCA sets out further plans to boost confidence and drive investment.More than 12.6 million UK investors (23% of all adults) hold an investment falling within what we call a Consumer Composite Investment (CCI), (FCA Financial Lives survey, 2024).The FCA said in its first CCI consultation that it would follow up on draft rules about consequential changes to other Handbook materials and draft transitional provisions or amendments to the transaction costs. These matters were not included in the first consultation to prevent a delay but are being consulted on now.This second consultation covers:Removing the requirement for firms to calculate and disclose implicit transaction costs. This would remove a significant compliance requirement for firms, while ensuring that consumers are still provided with the most relevant information about product transaction costs. The FCA is keen to hear views on how to make sure that these costs are understood. Simplifying overall cost disclosures by aligning other cost disclosure rules to CCI requirements. Consequential amendments to other parts of the FCA Handbook that result from the new CCI rules. Provisions for the transitional period until the CCI regime comes into full force.The proposals together with those in the first consultation set out the FCA’s ambition of building a new, bolder regime and it is open minded about how it can be designed in a way which best meets the needs of prospective investors.The FCA welcomes views through the consultation about how best to design an outcomes-focused regulation that is fit for many years to come.The FCA will continue its detailed engagement with a wide range of stakeholders on the issues discussed in this consultation and its wider CCI proposals to create a regime that works for consumers and the wider market. It plans to issue a Policy Statement covering both consultations with final rules in late 2025.Stakeholders are invited to respond to this paper by 28 May 2025.

We are proposing to remove unnecessary data reporting for firms, helping to reduce burden and unlock economic growth.The 3 collections identified will also be removed from the firm handbook, helping to further simplify our reporting requirements, and deliver on our commitment in our response to the PM’s growth letter.Jessica Rusu, chief data, intelligence and information officer, FCA said:'In our strategy, we committed to being a smarter regulator and supporting growth. So while we need data to do our job, we should challenge ourselves on whether what we’re asking for is needed. We’re getting rid of these data requests, saving time and money for thousands of firms, and we will review more in the future.' To further support firms with more streamlined reporting, the FCA has recently launched My FCA, providing firms with a single sign-in and all regulatory tasks in one place.We welcome feedback on our proposals in the consultation paper by 14 May 2025. While this consultation is live, firms who are currently required to submit these data returns can choose not to do so and will not be pursued for late payment fees.

On 14 April 2025, Blackthorn Finance Ltd entered special administration. Adam Stephens, Philip Hemming and Kevin Ley of S&W Partners LLP were appointed joint special administrators. Blackthorn Finance Limited (Blackthorn) is authorised by the FCA to provide payment services to a range of corporate and individual customers. On 17 November 2023, the FCA imposed restrictions on Blackthorn’s activities and an asset requirement. On 29 August 2024, Blackthorn entered Members Voluntary Liquidation, a solvent form of winding up.Recently, the liquidators of the firm reached the view that Blackthorn did not have sufficient assets to meet all the claims that were being made by creditors. Therefore this means, the liquidators have been granted an order placing Blackthorn into special administration.The special administrators will continue to assess claims against the relevant funds held with Blackthorn. The special administrators are responsible for managing customer claims and returning funds back to customers, where possible. Customers should receive more information from them, including details on how to make a claim in due course.Who to contactCustomers should contact the joint special administrators at S&W Partners LLP for further information:Email: blackthorn.finance@swgroup.comTelephone: 020 7397 2594Website: https://www.ips-docs.com/Be alert to scamsAll customers should remain alert to the possibility of fraud.If you receive an unexpected phone call from someone claiming to be from Blackthorn, S&W Partners LLP, or the FCA, please end the call and contact the relevant party using the contact details above.

Under its new strategy, the FCA is establishing a presence in the United States (US) and Asia-Pacific (APAC) for the first time. In the US, Tash Miah started in April at the British Embassy in Washington, DC. Tash will work closely with the Department for Business and Trade to advance UK-US financial services policy and regulatory cooperation, and support financial firms in the US to navigate UK regulation.Based in Australia, Camille Blackburn will establish a regional office from July 2025 as the FCA’s director – Asia-Pacific. The role will focus on supporting financial services firms to navigate regulation to enter the UK market or raise capital and provide UK firms with support expanding into the APAC region.Sarah Pritchard, executive director, supervision, policy, competition and international, said:‘The UK is a global hub for financial services. We are committed to continuing to build our global network and international reputation. These appointments will help us deliver on our mission to support growth through the export of UK financial services and attracting more inward investment to our shores. We recognise that major international investors want easier access to us, and having a presence in these key regions will help achieve that.’Improving exports and inwards investment is one of the FCA’s key growth commitments in its letter to the Prime Minister.Camille Blackburn biographyCamille Blackburn has been the director of wholesale buyside at the FCA since 2022, responsible for supervision, policy and market analysis for asset management and related services. She will start her new role in July. She has 25 years’ experience in financial services regulation, previously having worked as the global chief compliance officer for several large financial firms in the UK and in APAC. She has also held senior regulatory roles at the Central Bank of Ireland, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and Australian Treasury. Tash Miah biographyTash Miah has been with the FCA since 2022, working in its international division covering non-bank financial intermediation (NBFI) and leading the financial stability engagement group (FSEG).She started her career at Morgan Stanley investment bank in London, in sales and trading covering hedge fund clients, which included a spell in Hong Kong from 2018 to 2019.Notes to editorsRead the FCA strategy 2025 to 2030.

The FCA has charged John Burford for carrying on an unauthorised business and dishonestly misleading investors. He is suspected of generating over £1m. Between 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2023, Mr Burford is alleged to have accepted money from more than 100 investors, and advised and managed investments on their behalf without authorisation.Mr Burford was the sole director of Financial Trading Strategies Limited (FTS). Through its website, he promoted paid subscription services involving the provision of daily trade alerts which gave advice on trading opportunities as well as investments in 3 'Tramline' funds.The FCA alleges that Mr Burford repeatedly misrepresented the value of the funds and the amount of money he had lost while trading.Mr Burford will appear before Westminster Magistrates' Court on 23 May 2025.This case took 23 months from opening in May 2023 to bringing criminal charges – compared to an average of 42 months for cases closed in 2023/24. This is another example of how the FCA is improving the pace of its enforcement investigations.Steve Smart, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said:'Fighting financial crime is central to our new strategy and we will take action against criminal behaviour which harms consumers and damages the integrity of our markets. We allege that Mr Burford sought to defraud his clients for personal gain.'Notes to editorsJohn Charles Burford was born on 23 February 1940.The FCA is prosecuting Mr Burford for breaches of sections 19 and 23(1) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA) namely by accepting deposits and advising on and managing investments while not being authorised.The FCA is also prosecuting Mr Burford for a breach of section 993(1) of the Companies Act 2006 namely by carrying on the business of FTS for a fraudulent purpose and misleading investors as to the manner in which their money would be used.Carrying out unauthorised business is an offence punishable by a fine and/or up to 2 years' imprisonment.Fraudulent trading under section 993 of the Companies Act 2006 is an offence punishable by a fine and/or up to 10 years' imprisonment.Find out more information about the FCA.

When was the last time you got caught in the rain? It happens to me from time to time. I’ve forgotten my umbrella or dashed out without my coat, only to be greeted by an unexpected downpour. I should have anticipated it – checked my weather app, packed an umbrella, noted the foreboding grey clouds – but sometimes even the prepared get caught out.My personal experience captures the essence of what I’ve been thinking since our operational resilience policy deadline passed on 31 March 2025. Firms need to expect the unexpected and be prepared to maintain their services in all severe but plausible scenarios to prevent intolerable harm – in my case, merely drenched clothes, but for firms, potentially significant market disruption and customers left high and dry.Yes, we’ve marked the compliance milestone – firms have been working hard to comply with our rules by mapping their important business services, setting impact tolerances, completing scenario testing and addressing identified vulnerabilities.But the work doesn’t stop here.The real test is in how firms will evolve to weather all types of storms as the financial climate changes – from cyber threat actors targeting the UK’s critical national infrastructure, to increasingly complex supply chains, to emerging technologies like quantum computing and AI that present both opportunities and significant challenges.The FCA’s new five-year strategy emphasises deepening trust as fundamental to creating a financial sector that supports growth and improves lives. Operational resilience sits at the heart of how we deepen trust in financial firms and the services they provide.What sets resilient organisations apartLast month’s shutdown of Heathrow Airport from an electricity substation fire and last July’s CrowdStrike outage exemplify the types of disruptions firms should prepare for – both in their impact on vital services and in the back-up plans needed when systems, processes and buildings are compromised.In my role, my teams and I see hundreds of operational incidents that firms face each year. When disruptions hit, the differences in how firms respond become immediately apparent. As we engage across the sector, 3 patterns distinguish the most resilient organisations.First, they have prepared for severe scenarios in advance. Rather than designing manageable tests guaranteed to succeed, they create challenges so demanding they might ‘fail’ the exercise.These ‘failures’ often generate the most valuable insights, revealing vulnerabilities that would otherwise remain hidden until a real crisis strikes. Their preparation means they aren’t surprised by incidents. Instead, they have prepared their people, processes, technologies, and – crucially – their mindsets, to respond in a way that minimises harm to consumers, markets, and the firms themselves.Next, they have robust communication plans which are adaptable to various situations, and they regularly test these plans under pressure. They know what and how to communicate with their customers and stakeholders when usual channels are unavailable.Third, resilience permeates their culture. You can spot these firms by how their senior executives and their boards engage with resilience – not as a regulatory checkbox but as a strategic priority. Their product design incorporates resilience from the beginning rather than bolting it on at the end. These firms review incidents focused on learning, rather than blame, and adhere to the adage ‘never let a good crisis go to waste’.In short, they know what to do when things go wrong.Rebalancing risk to support growthEffective resilience isn’t about preventing all disruptions. It’s about responding and recovering in ways that protect consumers and markets.As our strategy highlights, growth requires rebalancing risk rather than trying to eliminate it entirely. We want to see firms taking appropriate risks to innovate, but with resilient foundations to manage disruption when it occurs. Operational resilience is fundamentally important to competitiveness and economic growth.Looking beyond the deadlineWith the 31 March 2025 deadline behind us, our supervisory focus is shifting. Firms have laid down the foundations to continue to build resilience by design, and we’ll be looking at how they strengthen their resilience culture by learning from incidents and ongoing scenario testing to remediate any newly discovered vulnerabilities.We want to help the sector improve its operational resilience through shared insights and a collaborative approach. That said, where we see failings that put customers or markets at risk, we will use our powers to drive necessary change.The journey continuesOperational resilience is more than a regulatory requirement – it’s fundamental to competitiveness, customer service, and financial stability. Let’s ensure it becomes part of our sector’s DNA.After all, nobody wants to be caught in a downpour without an umbrella – especially when you’re responsible for keeping millions of customers dry.

The FCA has highlighted that banks and building societies can improve how they treat customers affected by bereavement or registering a power of attorney. Since the introduction of the Consumer Duty, some firms are making a real difference with clear policies and procedures and actively using data to better identify needs and support their customers. However, some firms’ staff are unclear on the actions they need to take and how quickly. In some cases, this meant some individuals and their representatives were unable to access funds to pay essential bills.There were examples of customers who struggled to get support during an emergency, such as a mental health crisis, adding to their distress.The regulator has published good and poor practice to help firms provide the right support by being adaptable and putting consumers’ needs at the forefront of everything they do, which is consistent with the Consumer Duty. This multi-firm review fed into the wider work on how financial services firms are treating vulnerable consumers but also has specific findings that are relevant for banks and building societies.Emad Aladhal, Director of Retail Banking, said:'Dealing with a bereavement or setting up a power of attorney can often be stressful and emotional. When banks and building societies get it right for their customers they can make a real difference at a difficult time. But when they fail to recognise and respond to customers who need more help, it adds to the stress. All firms should consider where they can make improvements.'Our message to consumers is this - if you need to notify your banking provider about a bereavement or a power of attorney, speak to them about how they can support you and meet your needs.'The FCA issued guidance to help financial services firms support consumers in vulnerable circumstances in 2021 and introduced the Consumer Duty in 2023, which requires firms to deliver good outcomes for all customers, including those in vulnerable circumstances.As part of our five-year strategy, the FCA will focus on helping consumers navigate their financial lives and make better informed financial decisions, and the Consumer Duty will be integral to how firms treat their customers.Notes to editorsRead Retail banks’ treatment of customers in vulnerable circumstances Multi-firm Review: good practice and areas for improvement.This builds on our review of life insurers’ bereavement claim processes.The FCA’s wider review on vulnerability.The FCA has written to individual firms involved in the review to provide specific feedback.

We have published a Multi-firm Review, 'Trading apps: high-level observations'. Read the reviewThe publication aims to support new firms and traditional investment brokers seeking to offer these services, to help them understand their existing obligations. The review assessed the business models, product offerings and services of 12 trading app firms, identifying both positive practices and areas needing improvement.Key findingsBusiness models: Some firms act as introducers, directing customers to other platforms or an affiliated firm. Firms are encouraged to fully understand their obligations as both manufacturers and distributors, as set out in our rules.Revenue drivers: Firms generate income in a range of ways, including transaction fees on trades, subscription fees and interest earned from cash balances. Some firms may need to reassess whether their current pricing structures provide good value for consumers.Digital engagement practices: All firms demonstrated awareness of the need to use digital features, such as notifications, responsibly.Appropriateness testing: While some firms had strong processes for assessing customer understanding of high-risk investments, others lacked adequate checks, potentially exposing consumers to unnecessary risks.Research on consumer behaviourWe have also published an Occasional Paper, ‘Playing the market: a behavioural data analysis of digital engagement practices and investment outcomes’. This research looks at how app features, particularly DEPs like notifications and prize draws, influence consumer behaviour. The study found that apps with more DEPs tend to attract younger, lower-income users who trade more frequently and often suffer worse investment returns. While the research doesn’t directly link DEPs to financial losses, it raises concerns about their potential impact.Next stepsWe urge firms to consider these findings when designing trading apps and improving consumer protection practices.For more details, refer to our full publications on digital engagement practices and pricing.

We are helping industry get ready for PISCESWe consulted on the regulatory framework for the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System (PISCES) sandbox in December 2024 (CP24/29). PISCES will be a new type of platform that will enable the intermittent trading of private company shares.We are providing an early update following the closure of the consultation on the potential impact of the feedback on our final rules to support firms who intend to operate a PISCES. We are doing this now to give firms sight of our thinking as they are working up their plans. However, final rules for PISCES remain subject to the FCA Board’s agreement.

We have concluded our exciting 6-week policy sprint, supporting new ways to help consumers make important investment decisions. With only 9% of UK consumers taking regulated financial advice in the past year, the sprint is part of our work on targeted support, which aims to tackle the gap between bespoke financial advice and guidance. At a showcase on 8 April 2025, FCA-authorised firms, including retail banks, platform providers and wealth managers, presented customer journeys they have developed to help and support people to consider cash to investment decisions.This included using models that were tested and then refined using real customers in real time. Our work on targeted support provides a unique opportunity to reset the rules to create a new form of help – targeted support – for consumers who face decisions about their finances. This is part of our work to support growth in the UK – in helping consumers make informed decisions around their finances we hope to support a greater culture of investment. This is the first policy sprint that we have run in this way, testing a future rule set before formal consultation involving industry, consumer groups and other members of the regulatory family, such as the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Information Commissioner’s Office. The aim of the sprint is to help accelerate the final policy proposals which will be put out for consultation by the end of June 2025.Sarah Pritchard, executive director, consumers, competition and international, said:'We want to see a consumer investment market where people can invest with confidence, understanding the risks and opportunities available to them. The sprint is an important step to achieving that goal, helping firms explore ways to support consumers and helping the FCA to refine the proposed policy framework before consultation. We look forward to seeing more innovative solutions emerge.‘We encourage firms and consumer groups to keep engaging with us, and for firms who are interested to use our sandboxes to start testing their innovative solutions now.’BackgroundThe Advice Guidance Boundary Review (AGBR) is a joint FCA and HM Treasury project to examine and narrow the boundary between financial advice and other forms of support. As outlined in our letter to the Prime Minister in December 2024, we recognise the importance of the AGBR to improve consumer outcomes and support wider economic growth that can benefit everyone.The AGBR aims to enable firms to give more support to consumers to make decisions about their pensions and investments. By helping consumers make more informed choices with their pensions and investments, we aim to help consumers meet their financial goals and provide capital to drive the economy and boost growth.This work is part of a package of initiatives that aims to change how consumers interact with retail investments. We have consulted on a product information regime for consumer composite investments, to empower firms to find better ways to communicate with consumers about investment products.Our first consultation, CP24/27, ‘Advice Guidance Boundary Review – proposed targeted support reforms for pensions’, was published in December 2024. Next stepsOur second consultation for pension and investments will be published in H1 2025.We support innovation; firms who want to test innovate ideas or to take part in other related initiatives in our Digital Sandboxes should email sandbox@fca.org.uk.

We are seeking expressions of interest to join the Sustainable Finance Advisory Committee. We are refreshing the membership of our Sustainable Finance Advisory Committee and seeking expressions of interest to join.The Sustainable Finance Advisory Committee – formerly known as the ESG Advisory Committee – will continue the good work of the current committee advising the FCA board on emerging sustainability issues. This includes meeting the Government’s expectation that we 'have regard' to the UK’s commitment to achieving a net zero economy by 2050. The committee's membership will continue to be drawn from external experts who have in-depth knowledge of the sustainable finance sector.Membersare appointed for a three-year term, with a maximum of two terms (see our terms of reference). Members will be appointed in a personal capacity and will need to abide by a conflict of interest policy. We do not expect people currently employed by FCA regulated firms to be appointed to the committee. We have severalpanelswhich include regulated firms to provide challenge and advice to the FCA, including on sustainable finance initiatives.In line with our priorities and emerging trends in sustainable finance, we are particularly interested in candidates with expertise in:insurancewholesale bankingconsumer advocacyIf you are interested in joining the committee, please send a copy of your CV to the Sustainable Finance Advisory Committee at esgac@fca.org.uk by 9 May 2025.

His Majesty's Treasury has announced the reappointment of Nikhil Rathi as chief executive of the FCA for a second term. Since Nikhil joined in October 2020, the FCA has undertaken reforms to strengthen the UK’s position in wholesale markets, including the biggest changes to the listing regime in over 3 decades.The regulator has raised standards, introducing the Consumer Duty so people get the right support, communication they can understand, and products and services that meet their needs and offer fair value. With the Duty now embedded, the FCA is streamlining its rulebook, lowering costs for firms and boosting international competitiveness.The FCA also worked to reduce and prevent serious harm by ensuring firms meet expected standards at authorisation while reducing the time it takes for them to get approved, bringing more criminal charges last year than ever before and by cutting investigation times.In March 2025, the FCA published a new five-year strategy with 4 priorities: to be a smarter regulator, support economic growth, help consumers navigate their financial lives and fight financial crime.Nikhil Rathi, Chief Executive of the FCA, said:'I am honoured to be reappointed by the Chancellor. The FCA does vital work to enable a fair and thriving financial services sector for the good of consumers and the economy. I am proud of the reforms we have delivered to support growth, bolster operational effectiveness, set higher standards and to keep our markets clean and open. While we must go further and faster in this age of volatility, the UK is well placed as a major international financial centre.'Ashley Alder, the FCA’s Chair, said:'I am delighted Nikhil has been reappointed. He’s the right leader in testing times. His exemplary first term as chief executive has ensured the FCA is an organisation transformed. We've set a new standard for consumer protection, made it easier for businesses to access capital and quicker for firms to get authorised. That provides the solid foundation to deliver our ambitious new strategy - to deepen trust, rebalance risk, support growth and improve lives.'Notes to editors1. The Treasury's press release.2. The Chancellor’s and Nikhil’s exchange of letters regarding his appointment.3. Nikhil was first appointed in June 2020 and took up his role in October 2020.4. Nikhil’s new term will run until September 2030.5. Nikhil's date of birth is 5 August 1979.6. The FCA now has 11% of its workforce in Leeds and Edinburgh.

In the first year of its new strategy, the FCA will be a smarter regulator, support growth, help consumers and fight crime. The FCA will make it easier for firms to test innovative products and support new firms applying for regulatory approval as part of its work programme for 2025-2026.Every firm that uses the FCA's Regulatory Sandbox to safely test innovative products will be provided with an authorisation case officer from the start. This will help the right firms get authorised and bring innovative products and services to market faster. Since it was introduced in 2016, 195 firms serving UK consumers have been accepted into the FCA’s regulatory sandbox.The FCA's pre-application support service, which provides extra support for firms seeking regulatory approval, is also now extended to all wholesale, payments, and cryptoasset firms. This will encourage firms in these sectors to set up in the UK to fuel growth, exports and job creation, while maintaining standards. In the last year alone, the FCA has supported 80 wholesale firms via pre-application meetings.Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the FCA, said:'We're committed to being a smarter regulator - one that supports growth, helps consumers and fights crime. Our annual work programme details what we will deliver to achieve these goals. And today, we’re setting out how we’ll go further to help firms that want to join our markets with greater support for the application process and to test innovative products.'Making it easier for firms to innovate and growTo spearhead growth, the FCA will enable a new innovative market for private companies to improve their ability to grow and scale up. The Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System, also known as PISCES, will offer investors greater access to investment opportunities in private companies.To encourage innovation, the FCA's AI Lab will work with firms to deepen understanding and support the use of AI solutions to drive growth and competitiveness in financial markets.The regulator will also let more firms know it is 'minded to approve' applications for authorisation when it thinks they can meet required standards. This will allow firms to seek investment with confidence that they can secure regulated status.A smarter regulator, supporting growth, helping consumers and fighting financial crime To help consumers navigate their financial lives, the FCA will create a new regulatory framework, so people have access to the help, guidance and advice they need, to make informed decisions, at a cost they can afford.Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) products will also be brought under the FCA's regulatory regime. This will help ensure that those who find BNPL helpful can still benefit from it, firms can innovate and grow, and consumers are appropriately protected.As part of fighting financial crime and working smarter, the FCA will build a new data-led detection capability to increase identification of financial crime and take action to tackle it.The FCA has also published the consultation on its fees and levies for the year ahead. It is proposing to increase minimum and flat rate fees, as well as application fees, by 2.5% in line with the increase in ongoing regulatory activities.Notes to editorsRead the FCA Annual Work Programme 2025/26Read the FCA Fees and Levies Consultation PaperRead the FCA's 5-year strategy

The FCA is proposing reforms to its regime for alternative asset managers, to make it easier for firms to enter the market, grow, compete and innovate. The more streamlined and proportionate regime will make it easier for firms to operate globally, while encouraging effective risk management. It will uphold market integrity and market confidence by making sure consumers are appropriately protected.Asset managers are crucial for the financial wellbeing of millions and play a key role in capital formation for the UK economy. UK asset managers manage £12.3 trillion in mainstream assets and £2 trillion in alternative assets. Private markets have tripled in size over the past decade.Much of the UK’s asset management regulation is derived from EU legislation, including the alternative investment fund managers directive (AIFMD). The Government is consulting on bringing into effect provisions that repeal AIFMD’s firm-facing legislative requirements. Where appropriate, the FCA will replace those legal provisions in its rules. It is also considering changes to its existing AIFMD rules.Simon Walls, interim executive director of markets, said: 'We want rules better tailored to UK investment managers. These could allow them to operate more efficiently, further supporting competition, competitiveness and economic growth.'It’s part of our wider work to streamline the regulatory regime for asset managers, to support the continued competitiveness of our world-leading financial services as outlined in our new strategy.'In collaboration with the Treasury, the FCA is considering creating bespoke regimes for investment trusts and for venture capital firms due to those sectors’ distinct characteristics.The FCA would like comments on the proposals before 9 June 2025. The FCA plans to consult on detailed rules in the first half of 2026, subject to feedback and to decisions by the Treasury on the future regime.The FCA committed to support growth in its strategy, published on 25 March. This included reforming the rulebook for asset managers in support of UK competitiveness.The approach is among the almost 50 actions to support economic growth that the FCA set out in a letter to the Prime Minister.Notes to editorsRead the Call for input: Future regulation of alternative fund managers.

From 31 March 2025, firms can access My FCA as a single point of sign in for regulatory reporting tasks including submitting regulatory data and paying fees. My FCAMy FCA will make it easier to fulfil regulatory responsibilities while improving user experience.Previously, firms needed to sign in to 3 different systems. Jessica Rusu, the FCA's chief data, intelligence and information officer said: 'We’re committed to being a smarter regulator under our new strategy. Central to that is us being easier to engage with. We’ve listened to feedback and created a simple, clear and easy way for firms to meet their regulatory obligations.'My FCA is a key milestone in our Transforming Data Collection programme, which is a joint venture between the FCA and Bank of England.

Speech by Nikhil Rathi, chief executive, at the JP Morgan Pensions and Savings Symposium 2025. I was interested to read Karen’s recent comments about, in her words, the UK’s ‘slow motion train crash’ on retirement savings.An image that made me sit up – though probably not advisable reading thundering out of Waterloo this morning!When I consider that picture as a regulator, I’m drawn to the tracks to find answers. And what do they show us?Pensions, savings, mortgages, housing wealth – each sitting on their own line, with their own ticketing system, timetable, and rules.A lack of systems thinking. Resulting in confusion and fragmentation that hasn’t kept up with passengers’ changing needs.Disjointed journeys, missed connections and people not always getting where they need to go.That has to change, and today I want to set out how the FCA, in partnership with others, is laying new tracks.Helping to build the smooth, integrated connections people need to move confidently through their lives……whether that’s embarking on homeownership, transferring to a better pension, or making informed decisions about risk so they can arrive into a more secure retirement.And how by doing so, we can not only improve passenger journeys, but keep the whole network moving - powering growth.

The FCA, supported by the City of London Police, conducted an operation in London and Oxfordshire. On 20 March, more than 20 FCA and City of London Police officers searched three addresses across London and Oxfordshire. Four individuals, suspected of offences including fraud by false representation and money laundering, were arrested.All suspects were interviewed under caution by the FCA and released on bail. The FCA’s investigation into the case is ongoing.Steve Smart, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA said:‘The FCA is committed to rooting out fraud and money laundering which undermine trust in our financial services. We want to thank the City of London Police for their assistance with this operation. Fighting financial crime is a key priority for the FCA’s new strategy and joint working like this ensures that we can act swiftly to protect consumers.’Further informationThe Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 gives the FCA powers to investigate and prosecute unauthorised business cases.Breaching the General Prohibition is an offence under Sections 19 and 23 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, punishable upon conviction by a fine and/or up to 2 years’ imprisonment.Money Laundering is an offence under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, punishable upon conviction by up to 14 years’ imprisonment.Fraud by False Representation is an offence under the Fraud Act 2006, punishable upon conviction by up to 10 years’ imprisonment.Almost all firms offering financial services in the UK must be authorised by us. Search our list of unauthorised firms and individuals to be especially wary of.The FCA cannot comment further at this time but will make further announcements when appropriate.Find out more information about the FCA.

The FCA has launched a new 5-year strategy to deepen trust, rebalance risk, support growth and improve lives. Our strategy: 2025 to 2030The FCA will focus on 4 priorities:Be a smarter regulator; predictable, purposeful and proportionate. The FCA will improve its processes and embrace technology to become more efficient and effective.Support sustained economic growth, by enabling investment, innovation and ensuring the continued competitiveness of the UK’s world-leading financial services.Help consumers navigate their financial lives by working with industry to boost trust, product innovation and ensuring the right information and support is available for people to take financial decisions.Fight financial crime, focusing on those who seek to use the fact they are regulated to do harm. It will go further to disrupt criminals and support firms to be an effective line of defence.Ashley Alder, Chair of the FCA, said:‘We want to deepen trust in financial services and shift our collective attitude across financial services to risk. Too often the focus has been on the risks of a decision taken rather than the lost opportunity of taking none. We want to change that so we can spur growth and improve lives.’Nikhil Rathi, Chief Executive of the FCA, said:'Our last strategy set high standards and bolstered our operational effectiveness. We are committed to going much further, delivering at pace to meet the scale of change we are facing over the next 5 years. This strategy sets out our priorities, how we’ll become more efficient and effective and make the choices that shape the financial system.'Our 4 priorities reinforce one another and we look forward to collaborating with our partners as we become a smarter regulator, support growth, help consumers and fight crime.‘We are ambitious for the future and committed to enabling a fair and thriving financial services market for the good of consumers and the economy.’The strategy sets out how the FCA will change how it supervises to be more efficient. This includes taking a less intensive approach for those firms seeking to do the right thing, significantly streamlining how it sets its supervisory priorities, and reviewing whether it can stop requiring certain data returns. It will also digitise and simplify the authorisation processes so it is easier and quicker to apply, the information received is better quality and follow-up requests are reduced.The regulator also plans to invest in its technology, people and systems. It will support its people to build their digital capability and adopt new approaches to allow it to better handle the 100,000 cases it assesses every year. This will enable it to act faster and more assertively where harm is greatest.As the FCA integrates the Payment Systems Regulator and many of its functions, it will build on the success of Open Banking and launch Open Finance. This will allow for more seamless data-sharing which could unlock product innovation and deliver lower costs, more choice and better information for consumers.The new strategy builds on the FCA’s achievements over the course of its previous 3-year strategy. These include making the biggest changes to the listing regime in over 3 decades so it’s easier for companies to raise money, introducing the Consumer Duty to set higher standards of consumer protection, authorising firms that meet the regulator’s high standards more quickly, and keeping more potentially harmful firms out of financial services.Notes to editorsThe strategy comes as the regulator announces how it will follow up on its call for industry to identify ways to simplify and streamline its rules and reduce burdens on businesses.

In an action plan released today, we have outlined proposals to review our expectations for mortgages and lending, and to explore how we can simplify communications about savings accounts. We will also review parts of our credit advertising rules, such as lengthy terms and conditions. The proposals are part of our work to streamline our rules, reduce burdens on businesses, and improve outcomes for consumers following the introduction of the Consumer Duty.There was clear feedback to our call for input that now is not the time for wholesale changes to our rules. We will continue to engage with industry and others to get the balance right, without a widespread overhaul.Our plans include:Making it easier to navigate regulations for consumer finance, investment and mortgages firms by planning to retire more than 100 pages of outdated guidance.Withdrawing hundreds of supervisory publications.Reviewing current prescriptive disclosure rules to give firms more flexibility to tailor communications to customers' needs and preferences, like online and digital transactions.Revisiting rules for businesses with customers outside the UK, for example looking at whether insurance firms need to apply UK rules for their overseas customers.Sarah Pritchard, executive director of supervision, policy, competition and international at the FCA said:'Now the Consumer Duty is in full force we’re making changes quickly where stakeholders want us to, to cut unnecessary costs, support growth, and ultimately help consumers get better outcomes.'These proposals are part of our long-term efforts to future-proof our rules, reduce burdens for financial firms and will help the ambitious government targets to cut the cost of regulation.'Further informationRead Consumer Duty rule review next steps (FS25/2).We committed to streamlining our Handbook following industry input in our letter to the Prime Minister on supporting growth.The work announced today sits alongside plans to make our Handbook more user-friendly, and machine-readable.Supervisory publications to be withdrawn include Dear CEO letters, Portfolio letters, and Multi-firm and Thematic reviews that pre-date the FCA’s 2022-2025 strategy. Documents will still be publicly accessible.