FSMA 2000—the general prohibition

Introduction to FSMA 2000

The principal role of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA 2000) was to establish and transfer power to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) following the government’s decision to create a single regulator of financial services in the UK. The purpose of this Practice Note is to is to set out an overview of the make up of FSMA 2000. As part of government proposals to overhaul the UK financial services regulatory structure, the FSA was disbanded on 1 April 2013 and its functions were split between two new bodies: the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). FSMA 2000 was retained as the primary legislation for the UK financial services industry although the Financial Services Act 2012 (FSA 2012) made significant amendments to most of FSMA 2000. This Practice Notes sets out the key points of FSMA 2000, as amended, including the make-up and function of the PRA and FCA; the ...