On 14 January 2025, the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Designated Activities) (Supervision and Enforcement) Regulations 2025 (the Regulations) came into force and were published on legislation.gov.uk, along with an explanatory memorandum.

The Regulations enable the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to supervise and enforce rules that it makes under the designated activities regime, which was introduced by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023.

The Regulations extend the FCA’s existing supervision and enforcement powers under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 so they can be used in relation to designated activities. As a result, they allow the FCA to supervise designated activities by gathering information and launching investigations into persons carrying out designated activities, and to enforce its designated activity rules by publicly censuring or imposing financial penalties on persons that breach them.

Also set out in the Regulations are the procedures that will apply to the giving of directions by the FCA relating to designated activities. (Directions allow the FCA to require a person or persons to do something or refrain from doing something.)