On 11 November 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a webpage setting out the outcome of its enforcement regulatory disclosure review. The review was carried out following a recommendation from the Upper Tribunal.

The FCA confirms that it has completed the review and made a number of changes to its disclosure processes in regulatory enforcement cases, which aim to improve the quality of disclosure by providing greater support for case teams. In particular, the FCA highlights that it is:

  • Taking a broader approach to disclosure, which will mean its review of documents is not focused only on identifying potentially undermining material.
  • Enhancing its existing training on disclosure to include additional specialist training for those managing and overseeing disclosure exercises.
  • Providing additional training for staff and more detailed guidance on quality assurance.
  • Clarifying the roles and responsibilities of staff and managers involved in disclosure.
  • Giving greater emphasis to the importance of disclosure in measuring and rewarding staff performance.

The webpage flags that the FCA is required to disclose all documents on which it relies to build regulatory enforcement cases, as well as any other material that might, in its opinion, undermine its decision to take action. Under the new broader approach, the FCA confirms that:

  • It will disclose all material that is relevant to the facts of the matter, save where it is disproportionate, not in the public interest, or otherwise inappropriate to do so. This will include all material that is potentially undermining as well as supportive material.
  • Disclosure reviews will be aimed at identifying all the relevant material and will not be focused on only looking for potentially undermining material, with the aim of reducing the risk that the FCA mistakenly fails to disclose a document.

The FCA intends to monitor closely the effectiveness of the changes it is making, and to conduct a further review in approximately 12 months’ time to assess whether it should take further steps to improve its processes.