Business & Finance
FCA expands non-financial misconduct rules to cover nearly 40,000 UK financial firms
New Financial Conduct Authority rules will require investment managers, hedge funds, and insurers to report serious bullying, harassment, and misconduct.
The short version
- The UK Financial Conduct Authority is expanding its non-financial misconduct reporting rules beyond banking to cover nearly 40,000 financial services companies starting next month.
- Regulated firms will be required to report serious cases of misconduct—including sexual harassment, racism, violence, and intimidation—to the regulator and share these reports with prospective future employers.
- The expansion aims to stop bad actors from moving between firms undetected, while companies update internal policies and complete ongoing investigations to comply.
Key facts
- Starting next month, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is expanding non-financial misconduct regulations to roughly 40,000 UK companies, including hedge funds, insurers, pension firms, and brokers.[The Guardian]
- Firms bound by the senior managers and certification regime must disclose serious non-financial misconduct—such as racism, sexual harassment, violence, and intimidation—to both the FCA and prospective employers.[The Guardian]
- Legal experts report that companies are currently updating internal policies, conducting staff training, and finishing active internal investigations ahead of the enforcement deadline.[The Guardian]
- Hedge fund founder Crispin Odey is contesting an FCA ban prohibiting him from senior financial industry roles following allegations of sexual harassment, which he denies.[The Guardian]
What remains uncertain
- The outcome of the legal battle between the FCA and Crispin Odey regarding his senior role ban remains unresolved.[The Guardian]
Sources
- City firms race to prepare for FCA crackdown on bullying and harassmentThe Guardian - World