Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) fell to the lowest level in two years in Quarter 4 2025. Between October and December, the FOS received 47,300 complaints compared to 68,400 in the closing quarter of 2024. The decline comes after an overhaul of rules from regulators and the Treasury, which means professional representatives now…
Read more
The Bank of England has announced that it has held interest rates at 3.75% following the first meeting of its Monetary Policy Committee of 2026. The Bank has voted by 5 to 4 to keep rates on hold at 3.75%. Four members voted to reduce the base rate to 3.5%, giving an indication of forward guidance. Commenting…
Read more
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) have warned claims management companies (CMCs) and law firms over excessive fees in motor finance commission claims. The regulators emphasised that firms must ensure consumers do not have multiple representatives and must charge reasonable termination fees.The FCA has also written to lenders setting out…
Read more
The Bank of England has announced the launch of its new Scale-Up Unit to support UK fintech firms, with OakNorth, Allica Bank, Clearbank, Zopa, Monument Bank, and Nottingham Building Society among the first cohort to be overseen by the regulatory initiative. This initiative, a collaboration between the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority…
Read more
UK Finance has today announced that another eight institutions have become signatories to its refreshed Financial Abuse Code. This expansion means almost 90 per cent of the UK’s mortgage market will now be covered, reinforcing the industry’s commitment to supporting customers experiencing domestic abuse, including economic abuse. The announcement marks a significant milestone, bringing the total number of firms signing the Code to 33, covering 49 brands, supporting the Government’s ambition to halve…
Read more
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published a consultation paper with proposals to transform Retail Banking Business Models data collections into an annual return to enable the regulator to monitor competitive dynamics to identify shifts, spot emerging harms and intervene where needed. Damien Burke, Head of Regulatory Practice at Broadstone, said “The FCA’s consultation aims…
Read more
The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has outlined changes that will provide businesses with more information on the card payment fees they incur. This follows its market review which found Mastercard and Visa don’t face competition with fees rising and a lack of clarity on how much businesses will have to pay to accept card payments. Card payments…
Read more
Bank of England has cut interest rates by a quarter point to 3.75% in response to a weakening labour market and slowing inflation. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted 5-4 in favour of the cut, marking the first reduction since August. Paul Broadhead, Head of Mortgage and Housing Policy at the Building Societies Association, said…
Read more
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is enhancing its efforts to improve standards in the home and travel insurance markets following a super-complaint from Which? The FCA plans to review claims handling and customer service over the next year. It aims to boost consumer understanding of insurance products and ensure firms provide accurate information at the…
Read more
Intermediaries think government policy is the number one risk to the mortgage market, according to research from Black & White Bridging. Black & White Bridging polled one hundred intermediaries active in the bridging sector and asked them to rank risks to the mortgage market, risks that included Bank of England base rate decisions, consumer affordability,…
Read more
Nationwide Building Society has been fined £44 million by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for failing to manage financial crime risks from October 2016 to July 2021. The FCA found that Nationwide lacked adequate anti-financial crime systems, allowing customers to misuse personal accounts for business activities. This oversight led to missed opportunities in detecting £27.3m…
Read more
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced new plans to reform the mortgage market to widen access to affordable mortgages for consumers. The four areas of focus include simplifying mortgage rules for first-time buyers and underserved consumers; reviewing retirement interest-only requirements to make them more accessible; improving innovation and disclosure rules and working with…
Read more
Consumer payments platform, Zilch has announced that it has secured a payments services licence from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The licensing marks a significant milestone for Zilch, removing the reliance on third-parties and enabling the business to build more payments methods in-house, develop and bring new products to market even faster and innovate quickly…
Read more