On 24 October 2025, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced the launch of a Scale-up unit that will be jointly led by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA).  

Overview

The Chancellor explained that the Scale-up Unit will provide growing financial sector regulated firms with tailored support and guidance to help them test ideas and will also help firms by connecting them with a dedicated point of contact to support with challenges they face as they grow.

The FCA and PRA each set out further details on dedicated new webpages, including explaining how the unit will work, such as that it will provide support in relation to understanding regulatory processes and the impact of new policy proposals.

The FCA and PRA explained further that this is intended to build on existing support already available for early-stage firms, including through the joint PRA and FCA New Bank and Insurer Start-up Units, and is part of a commitment to support firms through different stages of their life cycle.

Next steps

The announcement set out that Scale-up Unit will initially support fast-growing firms who are regulated by both the PRA and FCA (e.g. deposit-takers and insurers), but that it will be expanded to include other financial services firms, such as Fintech firms that are solo-regulated, next year.