Cutting back on transaction reporting requirements will save the U.K. securities industry an estimated £100 million per year, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says.
The regulator published a consultation paper that proposed a series of reforms to streamline trade reporting requirements — such as eliminating requirements for foreign exchange derivatives and other instruments (including equities, bonds and derivatives) that are only traded on European trading revenues, reducing the period for correcting errors to three years from five years.
Currently, the annual cost to the industry of meeting trade reporting requirements is £493 million, which the FCA estimated would drop to approximately £385 million by adopting its proposed reforms.
Additionally, the FCA said that it will work with the Bank of England and the HM Treasury to eliminate any unnecessary duplication in transaction and post-trade reporting requirements across their jurisdictions.
“Transaction reports are essential, helping us to detect financial crime and monitor the resilience of our markets. But we can be smarter, and by clarifying and streamlining requirements we expect to receive more accurate and complete reports,” said Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, in a release.
“Reducing costs while improving the quality of the data we receive is a no-brainer. It means we can support growth and receive better market intelligence to act on,” she added.
The proposals are out for comment until Feb. 20, 2026.