The Financial Conduct Authority on Thursday used its May Regulation Round-up to increase supervisory pressure on regulated firms across cyber risk, consumer redress and consumer credit.
The roundup highlighted a joint statement published 15 May with the Bank of England and HM Treasury on frontier AI and cyber resilience. The statement says frontier AI operates at greater speed, scale and lower cost than human practitioners, raising both defensive capability and attacker capability. Firms are expected to strengthen governance, vulnerability management, third-party oversight and response capabilities.
“Firms that underinvest in core cyber fundamentals will become more exposed as these technologies evolve,” the FCA said.
On motor finance, the regulator said it has received legal challenges to its compensation scheme from Consumer Voice, Volkswagen Financial Services, Mercedes Benz Financial Services and Crédit Agricole Auto Finance. The case is unlikely to be heard before October. The FCA said firms should continue preparing for the scheme until told otherwise.
The roundup also confirmed that Deferred Payment Credit regulation, covering Buy Now Pay Later products, begins on 15 July 2026. Any DPC lender entering into agreements from that date will need consumer credit authorisation or a temporary permission under the DPC Temporary Permissions Regime. The notification window opened on 15 May.
