Criticism mounts against FCA amid growing calls for regulatory reform

When lawmakers slam the U.K.’s chief financial regulator as “incompetent,” it not only opens the doors for others to pile criticism on it, but it sparks a debate about how the organization can be improved–or removed.

In November, Members of Parliament (MPs) released a stinging report into the effectiveness of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that said the regulator is not fit for purpose. The All Party-Parliamentary Group report (APPG) said the regulator is seen as “incompetent at best, dishonest at worst”; its actions “slow and inadequate”; and its leaders “opaque and unaccountable”.

It added that the FCA has a “defective culture” led by the top, who may also be impediments to future reform. A 2016 report also found the FCA was “hampered by a suboptimal organizational culture”–a failing that still seems apparent eight years later, despite the regulator’s ongoing “Transformation Programme” from 2020 meant to address previous failings.