The FCA's AI Update, published 22 April 2024 in response to the UK government's AI White Paper follow-up, sets out how the FCA's existing rules apply to firms' use of AI without creating new AI-specific requirements. It maps the government's five AI principles — safety, transparency, fairness, accountability and contestability — onto the Consumer Duty, the Senior Managers and Certification Regime, operational resilience and outsourcing rules, and the Principles for Businesses, and describes the FCA's technology-agnostic, principles-based, outcomes-focused approach.
| Document | FCA AI Update (Apr 2024) — Artificial Intelligence (AI) update – further to the Government's response to the AI White Paper |
| Issued by | Bank of England, Prudential Regulation Authority, and Financial Conduct Authority |
| Type | Report |
| Status | Final |
| Published | Apr 22, 2024 |
| Applies to | All FCA-authorised firms |
| Official source | fca.org.uk ↗ |
| Use cases | AI governance (general) · Customer-facing chatbots · Fair lending & discrimination · Third-party & vendor AI · Credit scoring & underwriting |
What are the key points of FCA AI Update (Apr 2024)?
- Published 22 April 2024 as the FCA's statutory-style response to the government's pro-innovation AI regulation framework.
- Confirms a technology-agnostic, principles-based and outcomes-focused approach — no AI-specific rulebook.
- Maps the five cross-sector AI principles to existing FCA regimes: Consumer Duty, SM&CR, Threshold Conditions, operational resilience (SYSC 15A), outsourcing and third-party rules, and the Principles for Businesses.
- Highlights the FCA's own AI monitoring and engagement: the joint BoE surveys, the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum, and the AI Public-Private Forum.
- Flags priorities for the following 12 months including further understanding of AI deployment, testing and collaboration with the Bank of England and other regulators.
- Foundation for later FCA initiatives — the AI Lab (October 2024), Supercharged Sandbox and AI Live Testing.
What did FCA AI Update (Apr 2024) change for banks?
It is the FCA's clearest single statement that firms deploying AI are already regulated through the Consumer Duty and SM&CR, and it is the document the Treasury Committee pointed to in January 2026 when asking the FCA for more practical guidance on how those regimes apply to AI harms.
Does the FCA have AI-specific rules?
No. Its April 2024 AI Update explains that the Consumer Duty, SM&CR, operational resilience and outsourcing rules already govern firms' use of AI.
Who is accountable for AI decisions at an FCA-regulated firm?
Senior managers under the SM&CR; the AI Update stresses that accountability for AI outcomes sits with the relevant Senior Management Function holders.
| Date | Document | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 14, 2026 | HM Treasury Financial Services AI Adoption Plan (Jul 2026) — Financial Services AI Adoption Plan | Final |
| Jun 5, 2026 | 2026 BoE/FCA AI survey — The Bank of England and FCA's 2026 AI Survey | Final |
| May 15, 2026 | BoE/FCA/HMT joint statement on frontier AI and cyber resilience (May 2026) — The Bank, FCA and HM Treasury joint statement on Frontier AI models and cyber resilience | In force |
| Apr 1, 2026 | BoE response to Treasury Committee AI inquiry (Apr 2026) — Response to TSC inquiry report on AI in financial services | Final |
| Apr 1, 2026 | BoE/PRA plan for safe AI innovation (Apr 2026) — Letter from Sarah Breeden and Sam Woods to the Chancellor and Secretaries of State on enabling safe AI innovation | Final |
| Jan 28, 2026 | DSIT/DBT strategic letters to regulators (Jan 2026) — How will regulators enable safe AI-powered innovation: joint letter from DSIT Secretary of State and DBT Secretary of State | Final |
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