FCA appoints head of Leeds office

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FCA appoints head of Leeds office

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has appointed its former chief people officer William Hague as head of its Leeds office, forming part of its transformation programme.

The regulator plans to recruit 200 roles as part of the programme, which it announced last year.

In line with its commitment to expand outside London, Hague will lead on setting up a new office in Leeds. 

Stephen Braviner Roman, the City watchdog’s general counsel, who set up the government legal department’s regional office in Leeds, will work with Hague to establish the office.

The FCA said it recently recruited 95 individuals in its authorisations department, which manages applications from financial services providers, investment firms and consumer credit firms to be authorised or registered by the regulator.

It has also committed to expand its footprint across the UK, including doubling its headcount in Edinburgh to around 200 and increasing recruitment in data and technology. 

The roles in Leeds and Edinburgh will be new roles or filling vacancies as they arise and will not involve a restructuring of positions out of London.

Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the FCA said: ”I’m delighted that an experienced leader like William will head up our office in Leeds, as we broaden our talent base and national footprint. 

“This is an important step in our transformation which will ensure we are a regulator that better represents the people we serve.”

The opening of the Leeds office was announced in the FCA’s business plan in July 2021 and follows the establishment of a small presence in Cardiff and Belfast. 

The City watchdog said turnover of colleagues is around 13 per cent, similar to the level before the pandemic. 

Earlier this month, the FCA said it was expecting 200 new joiners in the first quarter of the year and promised "one of the best" employment packages, amid staff voting in favour of strike action.

This came as the FCA’s Unite members voted ‘yes’ in support of industrial action against the regulator's proposed cuts to pay and conditions.

Unite, the union which represents staff at the regulator, said members voted by 87 per cent in favour of strike action in its non-binding ballot, which closed on January 31.

The union said unless a negotiated settlement is reached, Unite can now proceed to a full industrial action ballot. 

Key concerns by staff included the loss of routine payments labelled ‘bonuses’ which represented 10 to 12 per cent of salary, the narrowing of pay bands, lower pay bands for Scottish staff, cuts affecting graduate trainees, and a threat of future cuts to pensions.

Other concerns included a perceived unfair appraisal system and a high level of pay inequality, which Unite said was “unusually high by the standards of public sector regulators”. 

sonia.rach@ft.com

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