FCA Financial Conduct Authority

#The UK regulator

The Financial Conduct Authority supervises the conduct of around 40,000 financial firms in the UK and authorises investment firms, brokers and platforms. The Prudential Regulation Authority, part of the Bank of England, supervises banks and insurers.

#What an FCA licence means today

Since the Brexit transition ended on 31 December 2020, an FCA authorisation covers the UK only. UK groups serve EU clients through separate EU entities; EU residents should check which entity would onboard them.

#Retail protections

The FCA applies CFD rules equivalent to ESMA's (leverage caps, margin close-out, negative balance protection, no incentives, standard risk warnings) and banned crypto derivatives for retail consumers in 2021. Its Consumer Duty requires firms to deliver good outcomes for retail customers. Clients of authorised firms can use the Financial Ombudsman Service and, if a firm fails, the FSCS (up to £85,000 for investments).

#Using the FCA register

The FCA register shows a firm's status, permissions, trading names, websites and contact details. For clone firms, the FCA adds a warning to the genuine firm's entry, and the separate warning list covers unauthorised firms. Always contact a firm using the details on the register.