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FCA fines fall 60% as Brexit dominates watchdog’s workload

Regulator offers little explanation for the drop in fines but caseload figures jump as it seeks to crack down on financial crime

Andrew Bailey, FCA chief executive, speaking at a Bloomberg event in May
Andrew Bailey, FCA chief executive, speaking at a Bloomberg event in May Photo: Getty Images

Financial penalties imposed by the UK’s markets regulator fell by more than 60% last year — a period the authority said was increasingly dominated by its work on Brexit.

The Financial Conduct Authority has devoted “considerable resources” to the UK’s EU withdrawal, it said in its annual report on July 19, adding that “we expect this work to increase in 2018-19”. The watchdog said in March that it has budgeted an extra £30m to tackle the extra regulatory cost of Brexit this year.

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