UK FCA Handbook Notice No. 144

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published Handbook Notice No. 144, outlining amendments to its Handbook made by various instruments including:

• Markets in Financial Instruments (Record Keeping, Transaction Reporting and Financial Instrument Reference Data) Instrument 2026, which comes into force on 3 April 2028. The instrument makes changes to the scope, content and operation of the transaction reporting regime. The changes aim to simplify firms' reporting obligations, reduce duplicative or low-value reporting and improve consistency in how key fields are populated.
• Changes to Information Flows for UK Equity IPOs Instrument 2026, which came into force on 5 August. This instrument updates the FCA's rules on information sharing during UK equity initial public offerings (IPOs) to reduce market risk and frictions in the UK IPO process for issuers and market participants.
• Collective Investment Schemes Sourcebook (Liquidity Management) Instrument 2026, which comes into force on 1 February 2027. Introduced following the consultation published in CP25/38, the instrument makes targeted improvements to the liquidity risk management framework for authorised fund managers (AFMs) of UK Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) schemes and non-UCITS retail schemes. The changes promote the effective use of antidilution tools, clarify good practice for AFMs' assessment of the liquidity of securities held in funds, and introduce new guidance on stress testing.
• Perimeter Guidance (Regulated Cryptoasset Activities) Instrument 2026. Part 1 of Annex B of this instrument came into force on 16 September, with the remainder coming into force on 25 October 2027. It sets out perimeter guidance for the UK's future cryptoasset regime, helping firms understand when authorisations for cryptoasset activities will be required.
• Collective Investment Schemes Sourcebook (Cryptoasset Exchange Traded Note) Instrument 2026, which came into force on 28 September. Introduced following the consultation published in chapter 5 of CP26/17, the instrument allows certain authorised funds to hold cryptoasset exchange traded notes, subject to a limit of 10% of scheme property for retail funds.
• Cryptoasset Activities (Periodic and Application Fees) Instrument 2026, which came into force on 30 September, with Part 2 of the annex coming into force on 25 October 2027. This instrument sets out the application fees and periodic fees that firms with cryptoasset regulated activities permissions will pay to fund the FCA and the UK Financial Ombudsman Service.
• Disclosure of Climate-Related Financial Information (Asset Manager and Asset Owner) (Amendment) Instrument 2026, which came into force on 25 September. This instrument simplifies the FCA's Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures product-level reporting requirements for asset managers, life insurers and FCA-regulated pension providers in the ESG sourcebook. It introduces more targeted climate disclosure rules that reduce complexity and burden for firms, while improving the clarity and usability of climate information for investors.
• Financial Promotion (Notification of Cryptoasset Approval) Instrument 2026, which came into force on 1 October. Introduced following the consultation published in chapter 6 of CP26/17, the instrument removes the requirement to submit notifications for most approvals of cryptoasset promotions, reducing the burden on both firms and the FCA.
• Decision Procedure and Penalties Manual (Cryptoassets) (Amendment) Instrument 2026. Part 1 of Annex B came into force on 30 September, with the remainder coming into force on 25 October 2027. Introduced following the consultation published in CP26/19, the instrument makes minor and consequential amendments to the Decision Procedure and Penalties Manual and the Glossary arising from the introduction of the market abuse regime for cryptoassets. The amendments apply the FCA's existing market abuse penalty framework to cryptoasset market abuse and identify the FCA decision-makers responsible for exercising powers under the transitional provisions of the Cryptoassets Regulations.
• Data Decommissioning (No 2) Instrument 2026, which came into force on 1 October. This instrument simplifies the scheduling rule for Section M of the Retail Mediation Activity Return and clarifies guidance notes for firms completing the FIN073 return.
• Pensions Projections Exemption Instrument 2026 and Conduct of Business (Interactive Pension Simulations) Instrument 2026, both of which came into force on 25 September.

Feedback for the various consultations behind the Handbook Notice is set out in chapter 3 of the notice.

Return to main website.