Lockdown has created a fresh headache for financial regulators — it's much harder to keep an eye on what traders are up to

The watchdog received only 215 reports in April, its lowest level since current regulations took effect in 2016, according to Bloomberg , citing a public-records request.
"There may be several reasons for the decrease, including firms taking more robust steps to tackle financial crime risks and the impact of our associated supervisory activities, including communications on this issue," the Financial Conduct Authority said in a statement.
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Britain's lockdown meant that its financial authority was initially unable to maintain usual levels of regulation over markets.

The Financial Conduct Authority regulates and operates the UK financial system to monitor equity, fixed-income, and commodity markets by using internal information from firms and trading platforms.

The watchdog received only 215 reports in April, its lowest level since current regulations took effect in 2016, according to Bloomberg , citing a public-records request.

Over the past few years, the FCA received as many as 600 reports in some months.

Suspicious transactions and orders reports (STORs) remained low through March and May as well, the news agency said.

"As everybody has been at home that creates challenges in this space, like the absence of recorded phone lines, different levels of connectivity, and then, obviously, there have been reductions in headcount with people being sick and isolating," James Siswick, a London-based partner at business consultancy Guidehouse told Bloomberg.

"That may have weakened controls."

A spokesperson from the FCA told Markets Insider that the number of STORs filed fluctuates dependent on market conditions and market activity.

"There may be several reasons for the decrease, including firms taking more robust steps to tackle financial crime risks and the impact of our associated supervisory activities, including communications on this issue," the watchdog said.

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