The FCA has dropped it second advice suitability review due to probe retirement advice after reviewing its post-pandemic workload, the regulator confirmed today.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is looking to open three new regional offices by the end of 2021.

The regulator announced the move in its 2021-22 Business Plan released this morning, saying that it is developing a national location strategy as it looks to promote its role as a “regulator for the whole of the UK”.

At present the FCA has offices in London and Edinburgh.

The FCA said it is exploring opening an office in Leeds with at least 100 staff based there in the first phase. The regulator said it is currently working on what functions and precise numbers the Leeds office will have.

The Bank of England is also looking to open an office in the city, moving some of its London staff to create a new hub. The Treasury also recently announced plans in the Spring Budget to create a new campus in Darlington and make Leeds the headquarters for the UK’s new infrastructure bank. 

The regulator added that it plans to establish a presence in Belfast and Cardiff for the first time by the end of the year.

The regulator also plans to double its headcount in Edinburgh to over 200 over the next 2 years.

In its business plan the regulator also announced that it will begin a review of the scope and coverage of Financial Service Compensation Scheme (FSCS). 

The regulator said its review of the FSCS will be just one of many changes as part of its commitment to be a more innovative, adaptive and assertive regulator.

The FCA has banned former IFA Matthew Creed, a director of financial advisory firm AAA Management Ltd, from performing any regulated activity following an investigation into his bankruptcy.

The Financial Conduct Authority has today fined Lloyds Banking Group’s general insurance arm nearly £91m for false promises on renewal premiums over an eight year period.

The FCA and other regulators may set diversity targets in future for regulated firms.

Wealth management trade association PIMFA has called for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to come forward with tangible, tested proposals to introduce friction into the consumer journey with respect to financial promotions.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said its review of fund managers found that most were falling short on assessing the value of their funds.

The FCA will ban commissions on funeral plans from 29 July 2022 when it begins to regulate the funeral plans market for the first time. 

The FCA is consulting on plans to boost the number of listed companies and IPOs (initial public offerings) in the UK to encourage new investment and provide a wider choice for investors.

The Financial Conduct Authority is to order "significantly" higher standards at some 'host' Authorised Fund Managers (AFMs) where it has identified weaknesses.