FCA Strategy 2025 – 2030

The Financial Conduct Authority’s new five-year strategy was published on 25th March 2025. The FCA will focus on four key priorities: becoming a smarter regulator, supporting sustained economic growth, helping consumers navigate their financial lives, and fighting financial crime.

At first glance, these four priorities don’t seem to be a huge step change from previous strategies. What is perhaps most interesting is the stronger emphasis on economic growth, in line with its new secondary objective (established in 2023). Now that the Consumer Duty has been in place for almost two years, the regulator seems to feel confident that firms complying with the Duty – or being subject to action where they fail – means that the potential for harms to consumers is reducing.

This next phase of the longer-term plan aims to reduce the burdens on both regulator and firms, through “embracing technology to become more efficient and effective”, using its benefits to transform how the FCA regulates, while managing its risks.

To achieve these objectives, the FCA plans to take a less intensive stance towards firms that clearly demonstrate compliance, allowing them to streamline supervisory priorities. They’ll do this through digitizing and simplifying authorisation processes to keep applications moving smoothly, and to reduce follow up requests.

This tone signals a clear shift from focusing on reducing risk to making the most of opportunity. Interestingly, the strategy also highlights the opportunity cost of inaction, suggesting that excessive caution could hinder growth. Since its inception, the FCA has been fairly risk-averse, proritising consumer protection and market stability over economic growth.

So is there a potential tension with the Consumer Duty?

Undoubtedly, the Duty encourages firms to be more cautious, particularly where foreseeable consumer harm is concerned. The new strategy, however, wants firms to embrace opportunity, reducing red tape to foster innovation.

The strategy document suggests that the FCA will try to navigate this balance through its plans for targeted supervision. The regulator might allow more risk-taking, but with stronger accountability. Firms with a strong track record of compliance could get more freedom, at the cost of more responsibility, and rapid and severe action if it causes harm to consumers.

The strategy says the FCA assesses around 100,000 cases a year. With a more technological approach, it aims to work smarter, focusing on the greatest harm, so that its better able to understand which of these cases needs more intensive involvement. Watching as some key metrics develop over the next few months will show whether these changes are part of a real shift or just rhetorical and designed to placate the Government’s requests for ideas to boost growth.

There’s good news for firms. The FCA wants to be easier to engage with. They say they recognize the significant task that is supplying them with data, so they’ll review what information they ask for and make sure they’re only asking for what is needed. They are planning to scrap outdated guidance and simplify the rules in the FCA Handbook, removing duplications and confusing or conflicting rules. The real shift in language suggests that, at the least, it’s aiming to become a more business-friendly regulator, willing to engage with firms in a way that supports growth.

However, the focus on outcomes remains. Box-ticking compliance this is not. The FCA is not dropping the Consumer Duty or financial crime prevention, so firms still need to meet high standards.

There is a lot in the regulatory pipeline, if you would like to be kept up to date with changes on the horizon please contact us to sign-up to our bespoke updates service costing £250+VAT per month.

Robert.bell@rbcompliance.co.uk