On 3 October 2022, the FCA published Consultation Paper 22/19 ‘Creation of a baseline financial resilience regulatory return’ (CP22/19).
In CP22/19 the FCA is proposing is introduce a new baseline financial resilience regulatory return, FIN073, which will replace the current Financial Resilience Survey (FRS) issued to the solo regulated firm population. The FCA estimates that its proposal will result in approximately 20,000 firms reporting on baseline financial resilience data on a regular basis.
The new return will be on the FCA’s data collection platform, RegData, which will reduce the administrative and financial burden that the current FRS places on firms. For example, firms in scope of FIN073 will benefit from the standard features of RegData that a survey tool does not offer. These include easier access to guidance, including data definitions, and the ability to access previous submissions. Firms will also be able to see FIN073 in their forward schedule in RegData, making it significantly easier for them to plan.
To further reduce the burden on firms the FCA proposes to make FIN073 significantly shorter than FRS. It also proposes to reduce the firms in scope by removing over 3,000 investment firms subject to MIFIDPRU. This is because the regulatory reporting under MIFIDPRU already provides the FCA with the baseline level of financial resilience data it needs. The FCA is proposing to bring into scope a small number (fewer than 100) of non MIFIDPRU firms that are currently subject to the Automated Financial Resilience Monitoring programme, and have previously been excluded from the FRS. This is so that the FCA can continue to receive baseline financial resilience information from these firms on a permanent basis.
The FCA is proposing to collect the data every calendar quarter.
The deadline for comments on CP22/19 is 2 December 2022. The FCA expects to publish a Policy Statement in Spring 2023.