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The House of Commons Treasury Committee has published a letter from the FCA outlining its progress against the recommendations set out in the committee's 2024 "Sexism in the City" inquiry report. The FCA's letter responds to a September letter from the Committee requesting an update on the FCA's progress. The key point in the letter is that it has confirmed that it intends to announce by the end of this year if it will issue additional guidance to help firms interpret its rules about non-financial misconduct (NFM). It also considers the use of non-disclosure agreements.
Since the Committee's report, the FCA has extended its NFM rules to non-banks – with effect from September 2026. Our article on this is here. Our response to the FCA's consultation on this can be found here.
NFM guidance
Although the FCA has now extended the rules, it has not yet decided if it is going to publish additional guidance to help firms interpret the rules and has sought additional feedback about whether firms need it. It says that it realises that further guidance will increase the cost for firms and says that any guidance will have to be indicative, not prescriptive, given the range of different scenarios that can occur. As mentioned above, it will confirm the position by the end of the year.
NDAs and enforcement cases
The FCA's letter also considers the use of NDAs in relation to incidents involving allegations of NFM. The FCA carried out a survey of wholesale insurers and insurance intermediaries, and wholesale banks and brokers that showed that while the overall number of reported NFM incidents increased over the three years surveyed, the total number of confidentiality and settlement agreements signed by complainants fell in the wholesale banks sector and remained relatively static in the other sectors surveyed. The FCA is not expecting to carry out surveys in other sectors.
Behaviours like bullying, harassment, or violence are a matter of regulatory concern, and when the FCA receives reports or intelligence that this is occurring at a regulated firm, it investigates and acts where necessary. Serious, substantiated cases of non-financial misconduct should be reported as conduct rule breaches and mentioned in regulatory references.
At the time of writing the letter, the FCA had 76 open supervisory cases relating to NFM. It also had one Enforcement case open relating to NFM. It published a Decision Notice in this case in March 2025, which the individual has referred to the Upper Tribunal.
Other issues
The FCA says that it will carry out a review of the removal of the bankers' bonus cap next year.
The FCA has been working with the EHRC and, among other things, has delivered joint training on NFM.
The FCA has recently updated its website to make it easier for external whistleblowers to find the help and guidance they need to submit a report to it. It also published its 2024/2025 Prescribed Person Report in June 2025. That report explains how whistleblowing plays a vital role in highlighting wrongdoing within the financial sector and shows an increase in the number of reports made to it. The FCA also works with whistleblowing charity, Protect, and it attended Whistleblowing Awareness Week at the House of Lords in July 2025.
While we wait for the FCA's final decision about guidance on NFM, we would suggest that firms review their internal policies and reporting mechanisms to make sure that they are in line with the FCA's expectations about dealing with NFM effectively.
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