City watchdog drops 'name and shame' for firms under scrutiny

The UK's financial watchdog has bowed to pressure and ditched a plan to frequently "name and shame" companies it is investigating.

- Anna Isaac

The Financial Conduct Authority has decided not to go ahead with applying a new public interest test for announcing investigations into regulated firms "given the lack of consensus" over the plans.

The government has been putting pressure on regulators to help "rip out bureaucracy that blocks investment" as it pursues growth.

Critics had pushed back against the FCA's plan to be more transparent with the public and whistleblowers when investigating potential wrongdoing in the City. The FCA had already watered down the proposals, first announced early last year, after an outcry from businesses and criticism from the then City minister, Tulip Siddiq. The revised plan would have given companies 10 days' notice before any public announcement.

Siddiq had publicly called on the regulator to rethink its plans and suggested she could overrule it if it pressed ahead.