New analysis of FCA fines data by Financial Planning Today has revealed that the total sum of financial penalties imposed by the regulator in 2024 tripled compared to 2023.

During 2024 the Financial Conduct Authority fined firms a total of just over £176m, up from slightly over £53m in 2023.

However, 2023 saw the lowest total fines imposed since 2018. In 2022 fines were even higher than 2024 with £216m in total fines levied.

In total the FCA has imposed approximately £2.8bn in fines on the industry since 2015.

The fine figures for the past decade show considerable volatility in the total amount of fines imposed year to year. In the past 10 years fine totals per year have ranged from £22m to £905m.

Last year banks were in the firing line with the biggest fines levied on Barclays PLC (£30m), Starling Bank (£29m), Citigroup (£28m), Metro (£17m), Macquarie Bank (£13m), TSB (£11m) and Barclays (£10m).

The fines were due to a variety of rule breaches including “unfair treatment of customers”, “lack of systems and controls” and “failure to disclose information.”

Accountant PricewaterhouseCoopers was fined £15m for audit breaches on the LCF mini-bonds.

In the pensions industry in 2024, the biggest fine of almost £4m was handed in July to three advisers who pocketed almost £6m in ‘marketing fees’ relating to a SIPP which included inappropriate high-risk bonds.

The three, Anthony Cuming, Kyle Jones and Steven Sahota, worked at Cardiff-based IFA firm Grosvenor Butterworth. Their fines were eventually cut drastically to £19,200, which represented “all of their available assets.”

In November pension transfer specialist adviser Philip Pryke was fined £1.4m after his Leeds-based firm advised on 986 transfers, many of them not in clients' best interests.

In March Huddersfield-based Inspirational Financial Management was fined £897,840 after it poorly advised people to transfer out of DB pension schemes, including the British Steel Pension Scheme. 

Last year's £176m-worth of fines was the second lowest in the last six years while 2023's £53m was the second-lowest lowest total in the last decade.

The highest total amount of fines in the last 10 years was in 2015, when the regulator handed out penalties totalling more than £905m.

In that year a number of global banks were slapped with huge fines for breaches of regulations. Barclays Bank was fined £284m and then £72m, Deutsche Bank £227m, Bank of New York Mellon £126m, Lloyds Bank £117m.

FCA fines year by year

2024 - £176,045,385

2023 - £53,354,600

2022 - £215,834,156

2021 - £567,765,219.95

2020  - £192,570,018

2019 - £392,303,087

2018 - £60,467,212

2017 - £229,515,303

2016 - £22,216,446

2015 - £905,219,078

The figures for 2024 or even earlier years may increase as some fines imposed have been provisional, pending appeals. For instance, in December two advisers were conditionally fined £270,646 and £399,817 respectively over failings involving £126m of allegedly "flawed advice" pension transfers.

The total amount of fines imposed so far in 2025 is £289,963, which related solely to Arian Financial (FRN 415230) which was penalised last week for inadequate controls and systems in the trading firm sector.

The FCA said: "Fighting financial crime is an issue of international importance, and forms part of the Authority’s operational objective of protecting and enhancing the integrity of the UK financial system. Authorised firms are at risk of being abused by those seeking to conduct financial crime, such as fraudulent trading and money laundering.

"Therefore, it is imperative that firms have in place effective systems and controls to identify and mitigate the risk of their business being used for such purposes, and that firms will act with due skill, care and diligence to adhere to the systems and controls that they have put in place, and properly assess, monitor and manage the risk of financial crime."