Professional & Financial Services
Accountancy, legal, consulting, banking, insurance and financial services.
Business activities
This sector covers the following areas of business activity:
Guided journeys
Step-by-step guides for businesses in this sector:
Consumer rights compliance checklist
Quick compliance check for traders selling goods, services, or digital content to consumers. Covers quality standards, remedies, distance selling, unfair terms, and enforcement readiness.
Start journey →Prepare your BNPL business for FCA regulation
Preparation guide for Buy Now Pay Later providers and merchants ahead of FCA regulation from 15 July 2026. Covers what is changing, whether you need FCA authorisation or credit broking permission, affordability assessment setup, advertising compliance, pre-contract disclosure, and complaints handling through the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Start journey →Respond to FCA enforcement action or investigation
What to do if the FCA contacts your consumer credit firm about enforcement action, a skilled person review, or formal investigation. Covers identifying the type of action, immediate steps, compliance review, and preparing your response.
Start journey →Handling customer refund disputes
When a customer demands a refund, what are your legal obligations? This guide helps you determine whether the customer is entitled to a refund, what remedy to offer, and how to process it correctly under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
Start journey →Meet anti-money laundering requirements
Essential guide to AML compliance for UK businesses in regulated sectors. Covers registration with supervisors, customer due diligence, suspicious activity reporting, appointing an MLRO, record keeping, staff training, and penalties for non-compliance.
Start journey →Start offering consumer credit to customers
End-to-end learning path for businesses new to consumer credit. Covers understanding FCA regulation, obtaining authorisation, setting up pre-contract disclosures and affordability assessments, complying with advertising rules, and verifying ongoing compliance under the Consumer Duty.
Start journey →Understanding consumer rights law for traders
Learn your legal obligations when selling goods, services, or digital content to consumers. Covers the Consumer Rights Act 2015 quality standards, tiered remedies, distance selling rules, unfair contract terms, and enforcement penalties.
Start journey →Building regulations compliance for renovation
Navigate building control approval, thermal upgrade requirements, and competent person schemes when renovating business premises
Start journey →Handle Section 75 claims from customers
What to do when a customer makes a Section 75 connected lender liability claim. Covers validating the claim against the GBP 100 to GBP 30,000 threshold, investigating supplier breach or misrepresentation, responding within the 8-week complaints deadline, FOS escalation, and recovering costs from the supplier.
Start journey →Consumer credit compliance quick-check
Quick compliance check for experienced consumer credit firms. Covers FCA permissions, fee payments, credit advertising, pre-contract disclosures, Consumer Duty obligations, complaints handling, and upcoming BNPL regulation.
Start journey →Start a financial services business
Launch an FCA-regulated financial services business with proper authorisation
Start journey →Start a fintech business
Launch a financial technology business requiring FCA authorisation
Start journey →Ongoing compliance for law firms
Learning path for maintaining regulatory compliance at an authorised law firm: annual renewal cycle, COLP and COFA reporting, client account management, AML supervision, complaints handling, continuing competence, diversity reporting, and preparing for SRA inspections.
Start journey →Start a law firm in England and Wales
End-to-end learning path for setting up a law firm: choosing entity type, SRA authorisation, appointing COLP and COFA, professional indemnity insurance, client account setup, AML registration, complaints procedure, and price transparency.
Start journey →Law firm compliance quick check
Rapid compliance audit for law firms: SRA authorisation, practising certificates, PII, client accounts, AML, complaints procedure, price transparency, and COLP/COFA returns.
Start journey →Respond to an SRA investigation
Problem path for law firms facing SRA investigation: immediate steps, cooperation obligations, instructing specialist regulatory defence, responding to proposed conditions or fines, SDT referral, intervention risk, and appeal rights.
Start journey →AML compliance for legal services
Learning path for law firms implementing anti-money laundering compliance: firm-wide risk assessment, client due diligence, source of funds verification, legal professional privilege boundaries, suspicious activity reporting, and preparing for SRA supervisory visits.
Start journey →Address an FCA threshold-conditions concern
What to do when FCA supervision has raised a concern that your firm no longer satisfies the threshold conditions. Covers diagnosing the supervisory action, responding to a section 165 information requirement, addressing the failing limb (resources, business model, suitability, effective supervision), and the worst-case path to an Own-Initiative Variation or cancellation of permission under section 55J FSMA.
Start journey →Get FCA authorised: from perimeter check to Connect submission
A six-phase learning path for first-time applicants. Walks you from establishing whether you need authorisation, through choosing your route, building governance foundations, self-assessing the FCA's five threshold conditions, submitting through Connect, and handling case-officer scrutiny during the determination period.
Start journey →Guidance for professional & financial services
Sector-Specific
- Cyber security for financial services firms — FCA operational resilience requirements for cyber security, including the 31 March 2025 compliance deadline, SM&CR …
- Access the Lloyd's of London insurance market — How to participate in the Lloyd's insurance market. Covers routes to market (managing agents, coverholders, …
- FCA Consumer Duty: compliance requirements — How to implement the FCA Consumer Duty in your firm. Covers the four outcomes (products/services, …
- Use FCA innovation services to test and launch fintech products — How to use the FCA's innovation support services including the Regulatory Sandbox, Digital Sandbox, and …
- Get FCA authorisation for financial services — How to apply for Financial Conduct Authority authorisation to carry on regulated financial activities. Covers …
- Prepare for Buy Now Pay Later regulation — How Buy Now Pay Later providers should prepare for FCA regulation. Covers the current exemption …
- Understanding UK consumer credit regulation — What consumer credit regulation is, why it exists, and who it applies to. Covers the …
- Meet pre-contract disclosure requirements for credit — How to provide the required pre-contract information to borrowers before entering a consumer credit agreement. …
- Understand how the Consumer Duty applies to credit products — How the FCA Consumer Duty applies to consumer credit providers, brokers, and debt collectors. Explains …
- Conduct and document affordability assessments for consumer credit — How to conduct, evidence, and document affordability assessments when lending to consumers. Covers the distinction …
- Comply with debt collection rules — How to collect consumer debts compliantly under FCA rules. Covers CONC 7 requirements for arrears …
- FCA authorisation for insurance brokers — How to get FCA authorisation as an insurance intermediary. Covers Insurance Distribution Directive requirements, permission …
- Handle consumer credit complaints and the Financial Ombudsman — How to set up internal complaints handling for consumer credit, meet the 8-week resolution deadline, …
- Meet FCA threshold conditions for authorisation — Understand and demonstrate compliance with the five statutory threshold conditions required for FCA authorisation under …
- Running a crowdfunding or P2P lending platform — How to get FCA authorisation to operate a loan-based (P2P) or investment-based crowdfunding platform. Covers …
- Section 75 claims and connected lender liability — What Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 means for lenders, card issuers, and …
- Comply with high-cost short-term credit rules — Additional compliance requirements for firms providing high-cost short-term credit (HCSTC), including the price cap regime, …
- Consumer credit compliance checklist — Annual compliance checklist for consumer credit firms covering FCA permissions, CONC requirements, advertising, pre-contract obligations, …
- Comply with credit broking rules — How to comply with FCA credit broking requirements. Covers who counts as a credit broker, …
- Hire purchase and conditional sale agreements — How hire purchase and conditional sale agreements work under UK consumer credit law. Covers title …
- Buy Now Pay Later regulation: what businesses need to know — Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) and other Deferred Payment Credit products come under FCA regulation …
- Fintech regulation and FCA authorisation — How to navigate FCA regulation for fintech businesses. Covers e-money and payment services, Open Banking, …
- Start an insurance broking business — How to set up an insurance broking business in the UK. Covers FCA authorisation versus …
- Comply with credit advertising rules — How to advertise consumer credit products compliantly under FCA rules. Covers representative APR requirements, triggered …
- FCA consumer credit authorisation — How to get FCA authorisation to offer consumer credit, including lending, credit broking, and debt …
- Handle early settlement and withdrawal requests — How to handle consumer requests for early settlement and exercise of the 14-day right of …
- Consumer credit rates and thresholds reference — Quick reference for consumer credit rates, thresholds, and regulatory limits. Covers Section 75 thresholds, HCSTC …
- AI compliance for financial services firms — How FCA-regulated firms must govern AI through Consumer Duty, SM&CR, and operational resilience frameworks. Covers …
- Get SRA authorisation for your law firm — How to apply to the Solicitors Regulation Authority for authorisation to set up a law …
- Understanding legal services regulation in the UK — How the regulation of legal services works in England and Wales under the Legal Services …
- Apply for ABS licensing as an alternative business structure — How to apply for alternative business structure (ABS) licensing from the SRA when non-lawyers will …
- Handle client complaints at your law firm — Set up and run a complaints procedure at your SRA-regulated law firm. Covers the mandatory …
- Respond to an SRA investigation of your law firm — What to do when the SRA investigates your firm. Covers types of investigation, your cooperation …
- Manage client money under SRA Accounts Rules — Set up and manage a client account to comply with the SRA Accounts Rules 2019. …
- Client account reconciliation: quick reference — Quick reference for client account reconciliation obligations under the SRA Accounts Rules 2019. Covers five-weekly …
- Anti-money laundering compliance for law firms — How to meet anti-money laundering obligations as a solicitor or law firm in England and …
- Legal professional privilege and SAR reporting: when the exemption applies — When legal professional privilege exempts solicitors from suspicious activity reporting obligations and when it does …
- Annual compliance checklist for law firms — A checklist of annual regulatory obligations for SRA-authorised law firms in England and Wales. Covers …
- Professional indemnity insurance for law firms — Understand your professional indemnity insurance obligations as an SRA-authorised law firm. Covers how to obtain …
- PII renewal checklist for law firms — Annual checklist to verify your firm's PII renewal is on track. Covers claims history, risk …
- Comply with SRA Standards and Regulations — Implement the SRA Standards and Regulations in your law firm. Covers the SRA Principles, Codes …
- COLP and COFA: Roles, Responsibilities, and Reporting — Understand what the Compliance Officer for Legal Practice (COLP) and Compliance Officer for Finance and …
- Comply with SRA Price Transparency Rules — Publish pricing information for specified legal services as required by the SRA Transparency Rules. Covers …
- FCA authorisation application readiness checklist — Audit-style yes/no checklist confirming your Part 4A application is ready before submission via FCA Connect. …
- Do I need FCA authorisation? — Whether you need Financial Conduct Authority authorisation depends on the "perimeter" set by the Financial …
- Consequences of carrying on regulated financial business without FCA authorisation — A strategic explainer of what happens if you breach the FSMA general prohibition. Covers the …
- Apply for FCA authorisation under Part 4A FSMA — How to apply to the Financial Conduct Authority for permission to carry on regulated activities …
- Appointed representative or direct FCA authorisation: choosing your route — A strategic comparison of the three routes into the FCA-regulated perimeter: direct authorisation, becoming an …
- FCA threshold conditions reference — Quick-reference page for the five FCA threshold conditions in Schedule 6 FSMA 2000 (as substituted …
Tax & Finance
- Pay Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) — When and how to pay SDLT on property purchases in England and Northern Ireland, including …
- Pay stamp duty on shares — How to pay stamp duty or SDRT when buying UK company shares, including rates, exemptions, …
- Understand property transaction taxes — Overview of SDLT, LBTT, and LTT -- the three separate property transaction taxes across the …
Compliance & Legal
- Using AI in recruitment and HR — Compliance requirements when using AI for recruitment, screening, and HR decisions. Covers equality law risks, …