FOI data shows 38 staff disciplined since 2022 as FCA consults on tougher non-financial misconduct rules
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has formally dismissed 12 members of staff following misconduct allegations, according to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act.
Across the last three calendar years, 38 FCA employees faced formal disciplinary proceedings: 14 in 2022, 13 in 2023 and 11 in 2024. In addition to the 12 dismissals, 26 members of staff were issued written warnings.
Of those warnings, 16 were first written warnings and 10 were final written warnings.
The disclosure lands alongside the regulator’s consultation, announced in July, on new rules to tackle non-financial misconduct (NFM) across the financial services industry. The policy aims to align conduct expectations for serious NFM, such as bullying, harassment and violence, across banks and non-banks and makes clear that such behaviours are a matter of regulatory concern.
In the foreword to the consultation paper, Sarah Pritchard, Deputy Chief Executive, wrote: “Failure to tackle toxic behaviours drives away good people, prevents staff from speaking up and undermines performance. It damages growth and enables financial misconduct.”
She added: “There is an important role for regulators to play in tackling these issues. This includes making sure that steps are taken to prevent ‘rolling bad apples’ – people moving from firm to firm without appropriate action being taken or without past serious non-financial misconduct being disclosed.”
Culture and conduct backdrop
A separate FOI response covering whistleblowing from regulated asset management firms shows the culture and conduct backdrop the industry is navigating.
The FCA received 95 whistleblowing reports from that sector across November–December 2023 and the full year 2024. Allegations cited included compliance (42 reports), fitness and propriety (28), culture of organisation (15) and systems and controls (8), with two not classified.
The FCA categorised these reports using its A–D grading. At the time of reporting there were zero Grade A cases (significant action to manage harm), 22 Grade B (action to reduce harm), 25 Grade C (report informed FCA work) and 4 Grade D (recorded on intelligence systems), with 44 cases remaining open. Examples provided by the FCA describe Grade B actions as writing to or visiting a firm, requesting information or attestations, while Grade A could include enforcement action or restrictions on permissions or approvals.
“Organisations tasked with upholding industry standards cannot afford to compromise when it comes to dealing with incidents of misconduct,” said Jason Kurtz, CEO at Basware. “With rising levels of financial crime, fraud, and risks, enforcing the highest standards of compliance is now a top priority, for watchdogs and businesses alike.”
The FCA’s FOI response on staff discipline sets out the totals and outcomes but does not detail the nature of the underlying cases or the seniority of individuals involved. The whistleblowing figures relate specifically to asset management firms and are separate from the FCA’s internal disciplinary statistics.
