There are hidden trends in the FCA's Interventions and Enforcement reporting - and they could surprise you

The FCA's latest annual report contains operating service metrics on its Interventions and Enforcement work.

These are more comprehensive than last year.

But there are hidden trends and themes in the data that aren't apparent from the charts and tables that the FCA has produced. And they are important to know about - they can forewarn us of the FCA's directions of travel and help us to take targeted actions to mitigate the relevant risks.

For example: the FCA is now opening as many variations of permission (VOP) and impositions of requirements (REQ) cases as they are Enforcement cases. And Enforcement staffing levels have declined precipitously in the last year.

Should firms prepare themselves for supervisory interventions instead of enforcement investigations? Not so fast.

Total FCA financial penalties have shot up by 50% in the last year. There are fewer financial penalties, but each one is bigger. So, when faced with an enforcement investigation, the stakes are higher than ever.

We've recorded a podcast episode discussing these and other hidden themes and trends - including a bonus segment on the FCA's financial promotions reporting. Click here to listen (and subscribe with your favourite podcast app).

And as you listen, look through our pack of data visualisations of the reporting discussed in this episode. 

Want more? Here is our previous publication and podcast episode on enforcement trends for 2022.