FCA Shuts Down 1,600 Websites in Financial Crime Crackdown

The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is escalating its efforts against financial crime, resulting in the suspension, removal, or blocking of over 1,600 websites in 2024. These sites were suspected of illegally promoting financial services without proper authorization.

The FCA has adopted new technology to identify non-compliant firms more rapidly and at scale. This proactive approach includes collaboration with major tech companies, leading to the removal of over 50 apps from both Google Play and the App Store.

The regulator's actions against unauthorized financial promotions have significantly increased. In 2024, the FCA intervened to ensure that nearly 20,000 non-compliant financial promotions by authorized firms were either amended or withdrawn. This is a substantial jump from fewer than 600 interventions in 2021. The FCA also utilized criminal powers to target illegal promotions by unauthorized "finfluencers."

According to its annual report, the FCA canceled the authorizations of more than 1,500 firms, a 20% increase from 2023 and over triple the number canceled in 2021.

FCA Chief Executive Nikhil Rathi emphasized the regulator's commitment: "We've embraced data and technology to crack down on harm and ensure high standards... We’re ambitious for the future, and committed to enabling a fair and thriving financial market."