There was a welcome pledge from the FCA this week that it would strive to speed up enforcement action in future, despite the challenges. This is promising but I suspect it will be harder to achieve than they expect.

Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight for the regulator, said in a speech this week that the FCA would embrace innovation in order to intervene earlier and act faster, taking a ‘targeted outcomes-based approach.’

With average FCA investigations in 2023/24 taking an average of 42 months to complete, the watchdog needs to do something.

The sheer complexity of cases, some involving 70,000 documents, and endless legal delays in the courts, where some cases are taking two or three years to be heard, means the FCA has to try a different approach.

While Ms Chambers was reluctant to say it, I suspect the FCA will be taking a more ‘police-like’ approach to pursuing cases. It is likely to choose to focus on cases where it has a good chance of success in terms of prosecution and leave the others to one side.

The downside of this is that some cases may get less attention with the FCA looking for cases that do not risk extended delays.

While this may mean that some crooks and fraudsters get less attention it is a sensible, common-sense approach.

Ms Chambers said the FCA had already made advances in shortening those timescales and had closed 60 enforcement operations over the past year, in comparison to 38 the previous year.

There are currently 45 people currently facing FCA criminal proceeding, with offences including fraud, forgery, insider dealing and money laundering, she told delegates.

Ms Chambers called this new results-focused approach “streamlining” of the FCA enforcement caseload and insisted there would be no “shying away” from challenging or complex investigations.

That may be her attention but common sense has to prevail. You cannot ’streamline’ a process and plan to deal with many more cases than previously in the same way or to the same depth. You cannot have your regulatory cake and eat it.

She said she would focus on cases with the “greatest risk of harm” and here I’m with her. This is realistic.

The FCA will need to ensure, however, that it does not just go for the headline-making cases and push the rest to the bottom of the in-tray. She admitted that fewer cases were likely to be investigated so it makes sense to prioritise. I agree.

Ms Chambers said reducing and preventing serious harm from financial crime will remain a significant pillar in its next strategy report, due in 2025, and so it should be.

The problem is the sheer weight of financial crime. Many of us are pestered night and day by scammers trying to convince us to click on a rogue link, to get us to hand over bank account details or invest in crooked or non-existent investments. This is getting worse.

The mountain of financial crime in this country will also likely only get bigger and the FCA is having to fight against the tide.

Ms Chambers’ aims are commendable and the common sense approach to tackling investigations sounds practical and wise. It is also an admission that the FCA cannot possibly stem the tsunami of financial crime and a different approach is needed.

Keeping the crooks well away from the vulnerable and naive will be one way to do this. Blocking rogue call centres quickly will be one way to take action. The telecoms providers in particular need to step up.

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Kevin O’Donnell is editor of Financial Planning Today and a journalist with 40 years of experience in finance, business and mainstream news. This topical comment on the Financial Planning news appears most weeks, usually on Fridays but occasionally other days.  Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Follow @FPT_Kevin >Top Tip: Follow Financial Planning Today on Twitter / X @_FPToday for breaking news and key updates