FCA Slashes UK MiFIR Transaction Reporting Scope

The UK Financial Conduct Authority’s transaction-reporting regime requires financial firms to submit detailed trade data so regulators can monitor market risks and potential misconduct. The framework, however, has drawn criticism for duplicative disclosures, extensive data fields and high compliance costs. The FCA’s overhaul is significant because it seeks to preserve the quality of supervisory information while reducing operational burdens, a balance that could improve the efficiency and competitiveness of Britain’s financial sector.

The FCA has finalised new rules that will cut the number of reportable fields to 52 from 65 and ease requirements covering certain foreign-exchange derivatives and financial instruments. The changes are designed to eliminate duplicate reporting and improve data quality. They are scheduled to take effect in April 2028, giving firms time to update their systems. The regulator estimates the package will save financial institutions more than £100 million in compliance costs each year.

The Financial Conduct Authority uses transaction reports filed under UK Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation, or UK MiFIR, to detect market abuse and financial crime and monitor the integrity and resilience of British markets. Introduced in 2018 and retained in UK law after Brexit, the regime generates more than 7 billion reports for the FCA each year, making data quality and compliance costs central to the overhaul.

The FCA proposed the reforms on Nov. 21, 2025, estimating they would cut annual industry costs to £385 million from £493 million, a net saving of £108 million. The package would reduce transaction-reporting fields to 52 from 65, remove 6 million EU-only instruments and foreign-exchange derivatives from scope, benefiting more than 400 firms, and shorten the default period for correcting historical errors to three years from five. The consultation closed on Feb. 20, 2026.