FCA Compliance Training 2025 – What you should cover

The new year marks the start of the second quarter of the 21st century – a milestone that underscores just how much the world of financial services has transformed since the year 2000. The global markets have weathered crises, technology has developed, customer expectations have shifted, and regulators have re-written the rulebook for firms navigating an increasingly complex environment.

That firms should prioritise FCA Compliance training in 2025 cannot be overstated. Compliance alone is no longer sufficient; firms must demonstrate proactive alignment with the Consumer Duty, and with the accountability, integrity and transparency expected by the Conduct Rules.

Staff at all levels, from the front line to senior management, must be equipped not just to meet regulatory requirements but to help individual customers towards measurable good outcomes. Training is no longer a box-ticking exercise, it is an investment. Firms that fail to adequately prepare their staff risk exposing themselves to operational, reputational and financial harm.

The Consumer Duty means that frontline staff training has become critical as they directly influence customer outcomes. Firms need to provide effective training on tailored support for vulnerable customers, flexible support for those in financial difficulties and detecting early signs of vulnerability or distress.

FCA Compliance courses should offer realistic, practical scenarios and aim to embed a compliance culture, making clear that ethical behaviour is the norm – not the exception. This is proving challenging for firms of all types and sizes. Resource constraints can be a significant undertaking for many, with high-quality training required by the FCA being expensive to design and deliver. For many firms, these costs may compete with other priorities. Some firms face the trade-off between investing in training and allocating resources to direct to operational activities.

Time constraints can leave managers and compliance offers with little time to deliver or oversee training. Making the switch from creating in-person to online training – particularly now that many firms use hybrid or remote working – can be a huge challenge for firms of every size and nature. Balancing traditional course delivery with the FCA’s expectation that training be comprehensive, up-to-date, focused on outcomes and practice is difficult; there’s a huge range of topics to cover and traditional methods often struggle to deliver the depth required within limited timeframes.

There’s a lot that firms can do to meet these expectations. The rise of e-learning platforms has introduced training that is more interactive, allowing FCA Compliance E-learning to simulate real-world scenarios.

Our expert-designed online training courses are a game-changer. Our packages offer real value for firms who can be confident they’re offering training that is based on specialist knowledge of the regulations and industry best-practice. Our online courses can be delivered to your employees’ inboxes instantly, saving time on development and delivery, and enabling staff to log in and complete the course at their own pace. Offering FCA Compliance online training means that those working in both traditional in-office and hybrid environments can benefit equally.

 The FCA make it clear that staff must continue learning and development and remain properly trained and competent to perform their roles. We update our courses each year to include new regulatory requirements, best practice and industry standards, with fresh and engaging scenarios. Browse our 2025 course catalogue here, or contact us at robert.bell@rbcompliance.co.uk for more information about enrolling groups.