The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is planning to simplify complaints reporting for around 10,000 regulated entities. While the FCA does not directly mention CFDs and retail trading firms, the proposed changes are likely to impact these providers, offering them a potentially predictable reporting process.

Under the FCA's rules, firms authorized to carry out regulated activities, including those offering CFDs and retail trading services, are required to report complaints data if they meet certain thresholds—specifically, if they receive 500 or more complaints in a six-month period or 1,000 or more annually.

Given that CFD and retail trading firms often have large client bases, they are likely to meet these reporting thresholds and thus be subject to the FCA's complaints reporting requirements.

FCA Consolidates Complaints Reporting Requirements

By consolidating five separate returns into a single data submission, the FCA aims to reduce administrative pressure while improving the quality of the data collected. The new approach is designed to help the regulator identify emerging risks to consumers more quickly.

For these firms, the changes may ease compliance workloads and support more efficient resource planning, particularly as the FCA moves to standardise the timing of data requests across firms.

Sarah Pritchard, the FCA’s Executive Director for Supervision, Policy, Competition and International, said: “Streamlining the complaints data reporting process will ease unnecessary burdens on firms and strengthen our commitment to smarter, more effective regulation.”

You may find it interesting at FinanceMagnates.com: FCA Allows 16,000 Firms to Skip Three Data Collections; Do CFD Providers Benefit?

FCA Receives 281 Whistleblowing Reports

Meanwhile, in whistleblowing, the FCA received 281 reports between January and March 2025, containing 752 allegations—mostly related to compliance. Of these reports, 181 whistleblowers provided contact details, while 100 remained anonymous.

During the same period, the FCA closed 468 reports, taking significant harm management actions in 12 cases and other mitigating steps in 192. The regulator stressed the importance of protecting whistleblower identities while using the information to enhance enforcement and oversight.