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Following the publication of financial reporting by PayPal Holdings Inc, we can confirm we are investigating Mastercard, PayPal and Visa under Chapter I in the Competition Act 1998, and Mastercard and Visa under Chapter II in the Competition Act 1998, for suspected anti-competitive conduct linked to thefunding and usage of PayPal’s digital wallet.The FCA has reached no conclusions nor made any findings with regard to competition law having been broken.Notes to editorsThe Competition Act 1998 prohibits agreements, practices and conduct that may damage competition in the UK.The Chapter I prohibition in the Competition Act 1998 prohibits agreements, concerted practices and decisions by associations of undertakings which have as their object or effect the prevention, restriction or distortion of competition within the UK or a part of it and which may affect trade within the UK or a part of it unless they are excluded or exempt.The Chapter II prohibition in the Competition Act 1998 prohibits conduct which amounts to the abuse of a dominant position in a market, and which may affect trade withinthe UK.The powers and processes that the FCA has and follows in relation to the Competition Act 1998 are separate and different from those followed in relation to enforcement of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Further detail on the FCA’s procedures in CA98 cases is available in our CA98 guidance.Competition Act 1998 cases may also be brought by the Competition and Markets Authority.The FCA is currently gathering evidence. The FCA may proceed to issue a statement of objections setting out its provisional view that there has been an infringement of the law. Not all cases result in the FCA issuing a statement of objections. If the FCA ultimately proceeds to issuing a statement of objections, it will provide the addressee(s) of that statement of objections with an opportunity to make written and oral representations, before it makes a final decision on whether the law has been broken.

We are launching a review of the claims management market, following concerns that consumers are being failed by some claims management companies (CMCs) and law firms. The review will look at the root causes of poor practices across the market, like aggressive marketing, misleading advertising and unfair exit fees. Other concerns include consumers being signed up without their consent - without clear, upfront explanations of the implications of signing up or ticking a box, for example on social media adverts - or by multiple representatives, potentially causing confusion and delaying compensation.While the approach to motor finance claims by some CMCs and law firms has put these issues into sharper focus, we are also concerned about the handling of other claims, such as housing disrepair. Last year, we set out areas where firms were not meeting our expectations (PDF), but we and other regulators continue to see poor behaviours. Working in close collaboration with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and other regulatory partners, we will use our review and supervisory and enforcement powers to rigorously examine: Whether consumers receive fair value, including competition on price and quality, and whether existing price caps are still fit for purpose, especially where free-to-use redress mechanisms exist.Financial incentives, including fee structures, funding and insurance arrangements, and whether these create conflicts of interest and/or lead to poor conduct and outcomes.Whether the full end-to-end consumer journey, including lead generation, marketing and advertising, delivers good consumer outcomes.Whether different approaches across different regulatory regimes affects firm behaviour and if some firms are failing to secure the appropriate permissions. We will look at practices of firms we regulate, including lead generators, as well as those authorised by others – working with our regulatory partners. We expect full, prompt and open cooperation from all parties we engage in the review. We, with our regulatory and enforcement partners, will take robust action if this is not forthcoming. Where we believe legislative change is needed, we will make recommendations to Government, or relevant bodies, including whether CMCs and law firms should be subject to stronger compensation mechanisms if they cause harm. Alison Walters, director of consumer finance, said:'CMCs and law firms can help consumers secure compensation they are owed. But too often consumers are being let down, eroding trust in firms that should be supporting them and damaging the economy.'This review will give us a clear picture of how the market is working and galvanise the further actions that are needed.' Aileen Armstrong, SRA executive director, strategy, innovation and external affairs, said:'When they work well, claims management services can benefit consumers. But we are concerned about poor practices and behaviours that are not looking after consumers’ best interest. 'We will work closely with the FCA on this important review. This is a cross-sectoral problem that requires joined-up solutions.'We will publish further information on the review by mid-May. We will continue to intervene where we see harm, including through the joint regulatory taskforce set up to tackle the poor handling of motor finance claims. This includes action against misleading advertising and sign-up processes, meritless claims and multiple representation. The taskforce will also look at firms’ financial and operational resilience including, but not limited to, the quality and integrity of accounting and audit practices.More informationThis is the latest measure by the regulators to improve standards in this market. A joint taskforce was announced in March to tackle poor handling of motor finance claims by some claims management companies (CMCs) and law firms. The FCA has removed or amended 800 misleading adverts, in excess of 28,000 consumers have been able to exit contracts free of charge, and 3 CMCs reduced their unreasonable fees protecting over 500,000 consumers. Formal investigations are also under way, with 1 announced by the FCA.The SRA regulates around 9,000 law firms in England and Wales. As of 30 April 2026, it has 109 open investigations relating to 76 firms that manage high-volume consumer claims. It has also closed 7 firms working in this area.Lead generators are firms that identify potential customers ('leads') and pass their details to another business, usually for payment.

Three people have been arrested as part of a crackdown on suspected illegal financial promotions. Two homes in the Chelmsford and Romford areas were searched, as part of an operation led by the FCA and the Eastern Regional Special Operations Unit (ERSOU), a specialist policing unit that tackles serious and organised crime.Adverts from firms that aren't FCA-regulated can be a warning sign of a scam. If something goes wrong, these firms aren't covered by the rules that protect people's money – meaning you could lose it with no way to get it back. If you're thinking of investing or dealing with a firm, use the FCA Firm Checker to confirm it’s authorised.All 3 individuals have been interviewed under caution.The investigation is ongoing, and further updates will be provided in due course.Notes to editorsThe Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 gives the FCA powers to investigate and prosecute unauthorised business cases.Breaching the General Prohibition is an offence under Sections 19 and 23 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, punishable upon conviction by a fine and/or up to 2 years’ imprisonment.Communicating unauthorised financial promotions is an offence under Sections 21 and 25 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 punishable upon conviction by a fine and/or up to 2 years’ imprisonment.Making false or misleading statements is an offence under Section 89 of the Financial Services Act 2012 by providing misleading statements, punishable upon conviction by a fine and/or up to 10 years’ imprisonment.Almost all firms offering financial services in the UK must be authorised by the FCA. Consumers are urged to search our Warning List of unauthorised firms and individuals and remain especially wary of companies operating without permission, as this increases the risk of financial harm.Consumers are encouraged to use the FCA’s firm checker to check whether a firm is authorised before engaging with its financial services.The FCA cannot comment further at this time but will make further announcements when appropriate.The FCA enables a fair and thriving financial services market for the good of consumers and the economy. Find out more about the FCA.

Our objective has been, and remains, to ensure consumers receive fair compensation as quickly as possible and to maintain a healthy motor finance market. An industry-wide scheme is the fastest, simplest route for consumers and the most efficient way for firms to put things right and give certainty to their investors. Alternative approaches would be slower and much more costly for firms.We engaged widely in designing the scheme. While being clear not everyone would get everything they would like, we made changes to reflect feedback from both consumer groups and lenders. The final scheme is fair to consumers and proportionate for firms.We welcome the broad support for the scheme and the commitment from most lenders to implement it. They have taken a pragmatic approach, recognising that introducing a scheme on this scale promptly has required us to make judgements to simplify in a reasonable and lawful way some complex legal and operational issues.We recognise that for some lenders this has been a difficult decision. We appreciate that they have ultimately decided to put a resolution for their customers first, many of whom have been waiting for more than two years for an answer. They have also chosen to provide certainty for investors and to help rebuild trust in the market.However, we have received four legal challenges: one from Consumer Voice (a limited company), represented by Courmacs Legal Ltd; and three from lenders - Volkswagen Financial Services, Mercedes Benz Financial Services, and Crédit Agricole Auto Finance.We respect the right of any party that the Courts decide has standing to challenge the scheme. We also note that none of the claims received are expressly in the name of individual consumers.We will defend the scheme robustly as lawful and the best way to resolve such a widespread, long-running and complex issue.These legal challenges create fresh uncertainty for millions of consumers and for the second-largest consumer credit market, with £39bn borrowed in 2024. We are therefore engaging at pace with lenders and consumer groups to understand the breadth of views as we determine next steps for the scheme, including contingency planning.We will provide further advice to firms next week. Our current advice to consumers remains that the best step, if you have concerns, is to complain directly to your lender.This is free - weexplain how to do it and the contact details for lenders. You do not need to use a law firm or claims management company, which may charge over 30% of anycompensation.

From 11 May 2026, cryptoasset firms preparing for the new FSMA regime will be able to request a pre-application meeting with us via our Pre-Application Support Service (PASS). Pre-application meetings are free of charge and give firms the opportunity to discuss their plans with us and ask questions before submitting an application for authorisation or variation of existing permissions.This comes ahead of the new regime for cryptoasset regulation, where firms wanting to undertake the new regulated cryptoasset activities will need to be authorised by us.The pre-application meetings will take place from July 2026 but we will schedule them as requests come in.The authorisation gateway will open on 30 September 2026 and the new regime will commence 25 October 2027.Find out more about the new regime for cryptoasset regulation.