Concerns Remain Over FCA's 'Name And Shame' Proposals

This blog post was first published by FT Adviser on December 3, 2024.

An enforcement investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) can be an extremely expensive and stressful experience for regulated firms and individuals alike. In February this year, the FCA launched a controversial consultation on proposals which would only have exacerbated the experience and likely caused reputational, as well as financial, damage. The key elements of those proposals were:

1. publicly announcing enforcement investigations into FCA-regulated firms early in the investigative process subject to a "flexible public interest framework". Many practitioners understood this to mean that publication would occur in the majority of cases;