FCA to ramp up investigations under SMR

Director of investigations indicates new path

The FCA is set to escalate the number of investigations into suspected wrongdoing once the EU's senior managers regime (SMR) has been fully implemented next year, although these will not necessarily lead to enforcement actions, according to the regulator's director of investigations.

In a 15 June speech, Jamie Symington said the FCA needs an approach to investigation which will help embed the culture of the SMR. "This means that generally where there are grounds for investigating a matter, there will be a need to investigate the role of senior management in the conduct issues that arise," he said. "It is inevitable that the implementation of this approach will lead to more investigations being opened." FCA dawn raids approach pre-crisis lows At present, SMR only applies to banks and deposit takers, but it will be extended to all other regulated firms, includ...