The Financial Conduct Authority has confirmed that serious bullying, harassment and violence will qualify as misconduct across a wider section of the financial services industry, in a move designed to strengthen trust and consistency across regulated firms.

While such behaviours were already treated as breaches of conduct rules in banks, the FCA has clarified that from 1st September 2026 the same standards will apply to around 37,000 other regulated firms. This marks a significant extension of the existing rules under the Senior Managers and Certification Regime.

The regulator noted that firms had broadly supported this expansion during its consultation. In addition, it confirmed that serious and substantiated cases of non-financial misconduct will now need to be included in regulatory references, making it more difficult for individuals to escape accountability by moving between firms.

“Too often when we see problems in the market, there are cultural failings in firms,” said Sarah Pritchard, the FCA's deputy chief executive. “Behaviour like bullying or harassment going unchallenged is one of the reddest flags – a culture where this occurs can raise questions about a firm's decision making and risk management. Our new rules will help drive consistency across industry and support the vast majority of firms that want to do the right thing to deepen trust in financial services.”

The FCA has also issued draft guidance to help firms assess non-financial misconduct when determining whether an individual is fit and proper to work in financial services. This includes considerations around social media use and behaviour in personal life, where relevant. The regulator has already ruled out guidance that would duplicate existing legal duties under the Equality Act or the new preventative duty on sexual harassment.

The draft guidance is open for consultation until 10th September 2025.

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