Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment her Department has made of the Financial Conduct Authority's regulatory performance in cases related to peer-to-peer style investments.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) assumed responsibility for the peer to peer lending sector in 2014. In 2016, the FCA launched a post-implementation review into the peer to peer and crowdfunding sector, leading to a consultation on updated rules for the sector in 2018, with a set of strengthened rules being published in 2019.

With respect to the FCA’s regulatory performance, this is a matter firstly for the FCA, which is answerable to Parliament, and for the Financial Regulators Complaints Commissioner (FRCC). The FRCC is the responsible body for assessing whether the regulators have carried out – or failed to carry out – their functions. It is currently assessing the FCA’s action in relation to certain peer-to-peer style investments.