The Financial Conduct Authority, the UK’s financial services regulator, responsible for overseeing market conduct and firm supervision, has finalised new rules aimed at making transaction reporting requirements smarter, simpler and more proportionate for regulated firms.
The updated framework is expected to save firms more than £100m a year, while still allowing the regulator to receive the accurate, high-quality data it relies on to detect market abuse, monitor market functioning and supervise firms effectively.
Among the key changes, the number of transaction reporting fields will be reduced from 65 to 52, cutting down on the volume of data firms must submit.
Foreign exchange derivatives will also be removed from reporting requirements altogether, a move set to lower costs for more than 400 firms. In addition, reporting obligations will be scrapped for around seven million financial instruments, including equities, bonds and certain derivatives traded solely on EU venues, a change expected to save the industry roughly £32m annually.
The window for correcting historical reporting errors will also be shortened from five years to three, which is anticipated to cut the number of transaction reports requiring resubmission by a third.
The FCA said the overhaul strikes a balance between reducing duplicative or low-value reporting and preserving the integrity of the data underpinning its oversight work, with the aim of easing regulatory burden while supporting growth and competitiveness across the sector.
Firms will have until 3 April 2028 before the new rules take effect, giving them time to prepare, test and update their reporting systems. The FCA noted that a flexible supervisory approach will nonetheless permit firms that are ready to adopt certain changes ahead of that date. The regulator also confirmed it will continue liaising with the Bank of England and the Treasury to align transaction and post-trade reporting standards more broadly.
FCA joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight Therese Chambers said, “Transaction reports are the backbone of our market oversight work – they help us catch financial crime, monitor market stability and supervise firms effectively.
“By taking a smarter, streamlined approach to reporting, we’re giving firms meaningful cost relief while ensuring we continue to receive the accurate, high-quality data that keeps UK markets clean and competitive.”
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