The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a review to enhance its rules governing financial services, with the aim of promoting innovation and reducing costs. This initiative aims to ease the regulatory burdens on businesses, support economic growth, and enhance the UK’s financial markets.

Streamlining Regulations

The review followed the introduction of the Consumer Duty, which ensures businesses deliver favorable outcomes for consumers purchasing financial products and services. The FCA has now called on industry players to identify overlapping or redundant rules that could be simplified under the new Duty.

This simplification aims to lower firms’ costs and encourage a higher risk appetite necessary for growth. In addition to the broad rule review, the FCA is also considering simplifying regulations in the commercial insurance sector, a market valued at over £15.5 billion in the UK.

Commenting about the launch, Nikhil Rathi, FCA’s chief executive, emphasized the importance of this initiative. “We are firmly committed to playing our part in supporting economic growth. The Consumer Duty marked a major shift for firms and consumers by setting higher and clearer standards of consumer protection and requiring firms to put their customers’ needs first.”

“We now want to seize the opportunity of the Duty and the move to a clear outcomes-based approach to streamline our rulebook, lowering costs for businesses and supporting the competitiveness and growth of the economy.”

Opinion on Reclassifying Customers

The regulator is seeking opinions on whether reclassifying customers could streamline the process of onboarding new clients or renewing contracts, thereby reducing regulatory costs and potentially increasing market competitiveness.

The launch of these reviews coincides with the publication of the FCA’s first report on its efforts to support UK competitiveness and economic growth over the medium to long term. FCA has now enhanced its authorization process, with 98% of cases now assessed within statutory deadlines, up from 78.9% in Q1 of 2022/23.

Additionally, the regulator offers pre-application support to overseas wholesale financial firms wishing to operate in the UK and has completed significant reforms to the listing rules.