During the 2019/20 financial year, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued 203 financial notices, secured 217 outcomes through its enforcement powers and imposed 15 financial penalties.
The notices were against 187 firms and individuals trading as companies, with 16 made against professionals.
Of the outcomes, 208 fell under the FCA’s regulatory and/or civil powers and nine under criminal procedures.
The watchdog handed out a total of £224.4m in fines against 12 firms and three individuals during the year.
This marks a slight decrease from £227.3m ($297m, €252m) in 2018/19 but is a significant increase on the £69.9m in penalties raised in 2017/18.
Caseload rise
The increase in penalties goes hand-in-hand with the rise in the number of cases: 646 for the last financial year, which is on par with the previous year (647) but a sharp jump from the 496 cases opened in 2017/18.
As per the table below, the FCA closed 19 cases relating to pension advice and pension scams last year.
While new cases were opened for pensions advice and investment scams – no new pension scam cases were opened.
The watchdog said that the cases may not be against a single party, as many involve both firms and individuals.
Source: Financial Conduct Authority
