The FCA has just announced that on Monday 7th September, it will launch a new Financial Services Register and for the first time, it will list scam firms.
The register will, they say, make it easier to find information on firms, individuals and other bodies that are, or have been, regulated by the FCA and/or the PRA. It will benefit from one search field to help users find a firm, individual, or collective investment scheme by looking up its name, reference number, or postcode. Users can also search for certain investment exchanges. Other plus points are said to be clearer language and text which sets out to explain key important financial, technical and regulatory terms.
For the first time it will also include details of Unauthorised firms. These are firms which, the FCA has been told, are providing regulated products, or services without the required authorisation, or are knowingly running a scam. Firms within this category will be highlighted in search results by red text and a warning symbol to make it clear that the FCA thinks people should avoid dealing with them, or the individuals involved.
The register will also include consumer credit firms that have interim permission, but it won’t cover the Mutuals Public Register, nor the Regulated Covered Bonds Register, both of which can be to searched separately.
