UK FCA annual work programme 2026/27

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published its annual work programme for 2026/27 setting out its planned activity for the second year of its five-year strategy. The programme is structured around the following four strategic priorities:

• Being a smarter regulator: to improve regulatory efficiency and proportionality, the FCA will continue to invest in digital, data and AI capabilities, reduce administrative burdens by simplifying rules and streamlining data returns (including removing three regular returns in April), and improve the authorisation process by further reducing authorisation timelines and continuing to report against new, shorter voluntary targets. In a press release published on the same day, the FCA announced it is developing a new internal AI-enabled authorisation tool, integrated into its existing systems. The FCA will also use generative AI to review documents received from firms, which, following successful testing, it will begin rolling out more widely across authorisations and supervision.
• Supporting growth: the FCA highlights initiatives to unlock capital investment and liquidity across UK markets, accelerate digital innovation to improve productivity and support firms to start up and grow. This includes: (i) making rules for alternative investment fund managers more proportionate and streamlined; (ii) reforming capital requirements for solo-regulated investment firms to improve liquidity; (iii) simplifying the securitisation framework; (iv) establishing a bonds consolidated tape and progressing one for equities; (v) developing the long-term regulatory framework for open banking and advancing open finance work; (vi) expanding overseas presence; and (vii) supporting UK participants to adopt a trade plus 1 day (T+1) settlement cycle next year.
• Helping consumers navigate their financial lives: the FCA confirms it will begin regulating deferred payment credit (previously known as buy now, pay later) from July, including carrying out affordability checks and assessing authorisation applications. It will also continue to prioritise financial inclusion and support for customers in vulnerable circumstances by undertaking a multi-firm project of smaller payment firms to identify good practice and areas for improvement on treatment of consumers with vulnerable characteristics.
• Tackling financial crime: the FCA plans to strengthen its approach to financial crime and online safety by creating a single, end-to-end, intelligence-led service to detect and stop the highest risk financial promotions more quickly, consistently and at lower cost, as well as increased use of data analytics and AI tools.

In the summer, the FCA will publish its annual report and accounts, to reflect progress made towards its outcomes and metrics in the first year of its strategy.

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