Emma RadmoreFCA has published its annual report on enforcement actions.
In 2017/18 it issued 269 final notices (of which only 21 were against individuals), secured 303 regulatory/civil outcomes (mainly involving refusal, variation or cancellation of permission or authorisation) and 14 criminal, and imposed 16 financial penalties which totalled nearly £70m. This contrasts to the £884m of fines 2 reports ago and £181m in the last reporting period. However, more cases were both opened and closed than in the previous 2 reporting periods.
The highest proportion of cases involved insider dealing and financial crime generally, with a sizeable number relating to retail conduct. It has a team dedicated to assessing firms’ compliance with threshold conditions and, as at the end of March, had 221 open cases against consumer credit firms.
The report includes some case studies and details of costs and timescales for enforcement actions. It also notes that FCA has seen an increase in reports of potential unauthorised activity.
