The UK FCA has unveiled a five-year strategy designed to crack down on market abuse, strengthen financial crime enforcement, and promote economic resilience.
According to ACA Group, this latest roadmap, announced on 29 April 2025 by Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight, sets out a mission to become a more transparent and effective regulator.
In her speech, Chambers made it clear that the fight against market abuse sits at the core of the FCA’s broader goals. “Our work on market abuse is a critical part of all areas of that strategy,” she said. The regulator will follow a ‘three Ps’ framework—predictable, proportionate, and purposeful—to ensure that enforcement remains fair, targeted, and impactful.
A key element of the FCA’s approach is to ease compliance burdens on firms while still preserving market integrity. This includes plans to simplify transaction reporting processes. The regulator aims to strike a balance between robust surveillance and practical implementation for market participants.
Chambers pointed to organised crime groups (OCGs) as a major concern, accounting for around 25% of suspicious activity reports submitted to the FCA. She highlighted that the regulator is increasing the use of data analytics, multi-agency cooperation, and targeted arrests to disrupt insider dealing networks linked to such organisations.
Firms are expected to play a proactive role as the first line of defence against market abuse. Chambers stressed the importance of working closely with the FCA, noting that collaboration and open communication are essential to uphold market integrity. “We cannot complete the market integrity jigsaw without you,” she added.
The message came with a clear warning—failing to meet regulatory expectations will have consequences. The FCA is prepared to deploy its full enforcement powers, including issuing fines, bans, and even restricting business activities, to deter and penalise wrongdoing.
Chambers also addressed the increasing threat of deliberate leaks, particularly in the context of M&A activity. Sharing confidential deal information with the media ahead of official announcements was singled out as a serious breach of market conduct. Such actions not only distort fair competition but also expose firms to significant reputational and regulatory risk. She confirmed that both the FCA and the Takeover Panel are stepping up their joint investigations into these practices.
To support the FCA’s agenda, firms are being encouraged to strengthen their internal controls and surveillance, particularly in areas prone to insider dealing and information leakage. Timely submission of Suspicious Transaction and Order Reports (STORs), participation in upcoming FCA consultations, and a firm commitment to the three Ps framework will be key to staying compliant.
Chambers’ address serves as both a call to action and a warning: firms must act decisively, or risk being held accountable for failures that threaten the integrity of UK financial markets.
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