Financial Conduct Authority: UK broker rules, checks and complaint routes

The FCA is an independent public body, funded by regulated-firm fees and accountable to the Treasury and Parliament. Its main statutory framework is the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. It began work on 1 April 2013, succeeding the Financial Services Authority for conduct and relevant prudential regulation.[4]

The territorial starting point is UK-regulated business, not every company in a worldwide broker group. International firms carrying on relevant regulated activities in the UK need the appropriate UK authorisation. Compare the customer agreement with the exact entity on the register; a group’s overseas affiliate does not inherit its UK affiliate’s permissions.[3][6]

Authority

Financial Conduct Authority

Jurisdiction

United Kingdom

Authority type

Statutory regulator

Authority status

Active

Territorial scope

United Kingdom; FCA conduct and relevant prudential remit. Firm permissions, the contracting entity, cross-border arrangements and product scope must be checked separately.

Relevant markets

FX and CFDs; Securities; Investment services; Banking; Payments; Insurance; Pensions

Remit

UK conduct regulator for financial-services firms and markets, with relevant prudential supervision. Its remit includes investment services and retail FX/CFDs; exact firm permissions and customer protections depend on the legal entity and activity.

Use the FCA Firm Checker for a straightforward firm-and-service check. The Financial Services Register provides the fuller record, including historical status, individuals, disciplinary information and whether a firm may handle client money. Historical presence and current authorisation are different facts.[5]

These are routes to live records, checked on 13 October 2026; this reference does not certify an individual broker’s current permissions. FXBrokers’ linked broker profiles are its editorial coverage, not a complete reproduction of the official register.[2]

Open the official register ↗

Check the exact legal entity, permissions, current status and scope in the official record. A brand connection in our coverage does not establish authorisation.

The retail CFD framework covers leveraged CFDs, spread bets and rolling-spot foreign exchange within its defined scope. Retail rules must not be carried over unchanged to a professional account. COBS 22.5 is the operative Handbook starting point for the product restrictions below.[6][7]

Cryptoasset derivatives are excluded from this margin schedule and subject to a separate retail marketing, distribution and sale prohibition in COBS 22.6. A historical “2:1 crypto CFD” figure should not be read as permission to offer them to UK retail customers. The current rule separately distinguishes non-UK-RIE cryptoasset exchange-traded notes.[8]

Elective professional status requires a substantive assessment. For MiFID business, the usual quantitative test requires at least two of: significant transactions averaging ten per quarter over the preceding four quarters; a cash-and-financial-instrument portfolio exceeding €500,000; or at least one year in a relevant financial-sector professional role. The firm also assesses expertise and understanding, gives a written warning about protections that may be lost, and obtains a separate written acknowledgement. Meeting a wealth threshold alone is insufficient.[9]

The FCA’s CFD supervision also focuses on conflicts arising when providers benefit from excessive trading, inappropriate professional opt-ups and redirection to overseas entities. Those are useful checks when comparing an offer, rather than reasons to assume every authorised provider uses the same model.[6]

Where CASS 7 applies, client money is governed by segregation and fiduciary arrangements. The framework creates a trust relationship in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and an agency relationship in Scotland, preserving the client’s beneficial interest. Distribution costs can nevertheless be borne by the client-money estate after failure.[17]

Keep four ideas separate: client-money segregation, the retail account’s negative-balance rule, FSCS eligibility after firm failure, and any separately purchased private insurance. None of them establishes that an overseas group entity or an unregulated product has the same protection. Any insurance claim needs its own policy wording, insured entity, exclusions and aggregate limits.[15][7][32][3]

Send a service complaint to the legal entity responsible for the account first. Explain the event, dates, loss and remedy sought, and keep the acknowledgement, complaint reference, account and transaction records, correspondence and final response. The Financial Ombudsman Service is free for consumers and can decide eligible disputes; the FCA does not act as the adjudicator of an individual broker complaint.[23][19]

If FOS cannot take the case, ask it to explain the jurisdiction issue and any appropriate alternative route. Court rights and limitation periods need separate consideration. FOS offers accessible formats, relay services and language assistance; request the adjustment needed when submitting the complaint.[24][26]

A report should identify the firm or individual, contact details used, what happened and when, and the relevant evidence. Keep original messages, URLs, screenshots and payment records. The FCA cannot recover scam losses or provide a personal ruling through its reporting channel. Whistleblowers should supply evidence already available to them; the FCA does not encourage obtaining additional information unlawfully.[30][27][28]

For a complaint about the FCA itself, an unsatisfactory business-area response can be referred to its Complaints Team. After that team responds, referral to the independent Complaints Commissioner is normally within three months of the response date; the decision letter supplies the applicable instructions. This timetable is separate from a broker complaint’s FOS deadline.[29]

FSCS is the UK compensation route for eligible claims against covered firms that have failed and cannot meet their liabilities. It applies statutory scheme rules, including the FCA’s COMP provisions for investment claims. Authorisation, a regulated activity, an eligible claimant and a qualifying liability must all be established.[32][35]

Start from the failed firm’s FSCS page and the official claims service. Applying directly is free. Follow the firm-specific announcement and any administrator instructions about client assets, then provide the records relevant to the claim: entity and account documents, statements, payments, withdrawals, charges and—where advice is alleged—evidence identifying the adviser and investment. The published CFD-advice checklist expressly asks for advice evidence and transaction history.[33][34]

There is no single claim deadline stated here for every broker failure. Use the relevant FSCS case instructions and the applicable claim rules; an administrator’s proof-of-debt process and a FOS referral are separate procedures. Do not treat the six-month FOS clock as an FSCS deadline.[33][35][21]

The FCA can provide alternative formats and accepts requests for information in other languages; Relay UK is also listed on its contact page. Postal correspondence goes to Financial Conduct Authority, 12 Endeavour Square, London E20 1JN. Use the purpose-specific official resources below for registers, rules, reporting and compensation.[30]

Resource availability describes the documented route. It does not establish eligibility, authorisation or compensation coverage.

Use the FCA Warning List for unauthorised-firm and clone alerts and its notices-and-decisions search for published regulatory action. Check the named entity, notice type, date and subsequent decisions; a warning, proposed action and final outcome must not be presented as the same procedural stage.[36][37]

The Annual Report 2025/26 overview links the authority’s performance, enforcement and service-metric reporting. The live consultations list is a separate route for proposed changes; proposals are not treated here as effective broker rules. This profile’s source review is dated 13 October 2026, and firm-specific checks should still use the current official record.[38][39][2]