FCA publishes its Business Plan for 2019/20

As the United Kingdom finalises preparations to leave the European Union, the immediate priority will remain supporting an orderly transition post-exit. The FCA said it will also continue to play a leading role in shaping the global regulatory framework working with other national regulators and international bodies.

The FCA’s Business Plan outlines the following four ongoing cross-sector priorities:

• Work on firms’ culture and governance, including extending the Senior Managers and Certification Regime to all firms;
• Ensuring the fair treatment of firms’ existing customers by monitoring firms’ practices, including the information they give prospective and current customers;
• Developing the work being done on operational resilience, which will play a vital role in protecting the U.K.’s financial system; and
• Combating financial crime and improving anti-money laundering practices by enhancing the use of technology and data, as well as engaging with multiple agencies and government bodies.

The plan also sets out three additional cross-sector priorities, which have longer time horizons: the future of regulation; ensuring innovation and the use of data work in consumers’ interests; and examining the intergenerational challenge in financial services. “Dealing with Brexit will be the most immediate challenge we face, but this plan also commits us to a stretching programme of work across the financial sector,” said FCA Chief Executive Andrew Bailey.

“In order to ensure we are a regulator that continues to serve the public interest, we need to adapt to the ever-changing environment,” Bailey added. “This is why the future of regulation is a key priority in this year’s Business Plan. We will be leading a debate about this with stakeholders so that we can keep pace with the developments taking place in the markets that we regulate and in wider society.”

Alongside the Business Plan, the FCA said it’s also publishing its annual fees Consultation Paper, as well as a paper setting out the its Research Agenda for the year.