The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Disclosure of Confidential Information) Regulations 2001

Made: 15th June 2001

Laid before Parliament: 15th June 2001

Coming into force: 18th June 2001

The Treasury, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 349(1)(b), (2) and (3), 417(1), 426, 427 and 428(3) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, hereby make the following Regulations—

PART I — PRELIMINARY

Citation and Commencement

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These Regulations may be cited as the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Disclosure of Confidential Information) Regulations 2001 and come into force on 18th June 2001.

Interpretation

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In these Regulations—

• “ACER” means the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators established by Regulation (EC) No. 713/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing an Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators;

• “the Act" means the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000;

• “assimilated law restrictions” means the restrictions imposed on the disclosure of confidential information by the relevant provisions, and (excluding those specified at paragraphs (h) and (j) of that definition) as they had effect immediately before IP completion day, and as modified as follows—requirements imposed on a Member State or an EU entity are to be read as if they are requirements imposed on the United Kingdom or, where relevant, a primary recipient;a restriction on the disclosure of confidential information to a person in a third country applies to any disclosure of confidential information to any person in a country or territory outside the United Kingdom;a requirement to seek the consent of an EU entity only applies where an equivalent requirement applies in relation to an equivalent entity in a third country; andfor the purposes of sub-paragraph (b) a reference to a person in a third country, which is a third country regulatory authority, is to be read as including an ESA and the ESRB;

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• “capital requirements directive information” means confidential information received by the PRA—before IP completion day in the course of discharging its functions as the competent authority under the capital requirements directive;after IP completion day in the course of exercising its functions in or under the Act or assimilated law which functions are equivalent to the functions as the competent authority set out in the capital requirements directive;

• “CCP” has the meaning given in paragraph 154 of Schedule 11 to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023;

• “competent authority” includes a supervisory authority that has the same meaning as in regulation 2(1) of the Solvency 2 Regulations 2015;

• “conglomerates directive” means Directive 2002/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16th December 2002 on the supplementary supervision of credit institutions, insurance undertakings and investment firms in a financial conglomerate and amending Council Directives 73/239/EEC, 79/267/EEC, 92/49/EEC, 92/96/EEC, 93/6/EEC, 93/22/EEC, and Directives 98/78/EC and 2000/12/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as last amended by Directive 2011/89/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council;

• “criminal investigation" means an investigation of any crime, including an investigation of any alleged or suspected crime and an investigation of whether a crime has been committed;

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• “disciplinary proceedings authority" means a person responsible for initiating prescribed disciplinary proceedings or determining the outcome of such proceedings;

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• EMIR information” means confidential information received by one of the regulators in the course of discharging its functions as a competent authority under the EMIR regulation;

• “the EMIR regulation” means Regulation (EU) 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on OTC derivatives, central counterparties and trade repositories;

• “ESRB” means the European Systemic Risk Board established by Regulation (EU) No. 1092/2010 of the European Parliament and the Council of 24 November 2010 on European Union macro-prudential oversight of the financial system and establishing a European Systemic Risk Board;

• “ESAs” means the European Supervisory Authorities established by Regulation (EU) No. 1093/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), Regulation (EU) No. 1094/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority) and Regulation (EU) No. 1095/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority);

• “EU Benchmarks Regulation 2016” means Regulation EU 2016/1011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016 on indices used as benchmarks in financial instruments and financial contracts or to measure the performance of investment funds and amending Directives 2008/48/EC and 2014/17/EU and Regulation (EU) No 596/2014;

• “EU entity” has the meaning given in section 20(1) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018;

• “EU Benchmarks Regulation 2016 information” means information received by the FCA in the course of discharging its functions as a competent authority under the EU Benchmarks Regulation 2016;

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• “foreign lawyer” means a person who is a member of a legal profession regulated within a jurisdiction outside England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, and is entitled to practise as such;

• “former regulated activities" means activities carried on before the coming into force of section 19 of the Act and which constitute—investment business within the meaning of the Financial Services Act 1986 ;deposit-taking business within the meaning of the Banking Act 1987 ;insurance business within the meaning of the Insurance Companies Act 1982 ; orinsurance business within the meaning of the Friendly Societies Act 1992 ;

• “former regulated person" means a person who, at any time before the coming into force of section 19 of the Act, was—authorised under section 3 or 4 of the Insurance Companies Act 1982;an authorised person within the meaning of the Financial Services Act 1986, or an appointed representative within the meaning of section 44 (appointed representatives) of that Act;an authorised institution within the meaning of the Banking Act 1987;a European institution within the meaning of the Banking Coordination (Second Council Directive) Regulations 1992 ;a European investment firm within the meaning of the Investment Services Regulations 1995 ;an EC company within the meaning of the Insurance Companies Act 1982 able to carry on direct insurance business through a branch in the United Kingdom, or provide insurance in the United Kingdom by virtue of paragraph 1 or 8 of Schedule 2F to that Act ;a friendly society authorised or treated as authorised for the purposes of Part IV of the Friendly Societies Act 1992, or permitted by virtue of section 31(2) or (3) of that Act to carry on activities without authorisation under that Part; ora building society authorised or treated as authorised for the purposes of the Building Societies Act 1986 ;

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• “market in financial instruments information” means confidential information received by the FCA or the PRA in the course of discharging their functions under—the markets in financial instruments regulation;EU tertiary legislation (within the meaning of section 20 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018) made under—the markets in financial instruments directive which forms part of assimilated law; andthe markets in financial instruments regulation;the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2017; orthe Act, which correspond to functions under the markets in financial instruments directive;

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• “PRA worker” means—a person who is or has been employed by the PRA; oran auditor or expert instructed by the PRA;

• “prescribed disciplinary proceedings" means the disciplinary proceedings prescribed in Schedule 3;

• “PRA rules” means the rules made by the PRA under the Act as they have effect from time to time;

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• “recovery and resolution information” means confidential information received by— the Bank of England in the course of discharging its functions under Part 1 of the Banking Act 2009 , the Bank Recovery and Resolution (No. 2) Order 2014 or Schedule 11 to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023;the FCA or PRA in the course of discharging their functions under Part 1 of the Banking Act 2009 , the Bank Recovery and Resolution (No. 2) Order 2014 or Schedule 11 to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023;a person appointed by the Bank of England under section 62B (resolution administrator) of the Banking Act 2009 to act as resolution administrator in the course of discharging that person's functions as such;

• “regulators” means the FCA, the PRA and the Bank of England, and “regulator” means any one of the regulators;

• “regulator worker” means—a person who is or has been employed by one of the regulators; oran auditor or expert instructed by one of the regulators;

• “relevant directives” means, for the purposes of this regulation— the alternative investment fund managers directive;the capital requirements directive;the conglomerates directive;the insurance distribution directive;the mortgages directive;the Solvency 2 directive;the UCITS directive;

• “relevant provisions” means, for the purposes of this regulation— Articles 76 and 81 of the markets in financial instruments directive;section 2 of Chapter 1 of Title 7 of the capital requirements directive;Articles 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69 and 70 of the Solvency 2 directive;Articles 102 and 104.1 of the UCITS directive;Article 13 of the insurance distribution directive;Articles 47.2, 47.3, 51, 52 and 53.2 of the alternative investment fund managers directive;Articles 5(2) and 36 of the mortgages directive;Article 83 of the EMIR regulation;Article 18 of the SFT regulation;

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• “Secretary of State worker" means—a person who is or has been employed by the Secretary of State; oran auditor or expert instructed by the Secretary of State;

• “SFTR information” means confidential information received by a regulator in the course of discharging its functions as a competent authority under the SFT regulation;

• “short selling information” means confidential information received by the FCA in the course of discharging its functions as a competent authority under the short selling regulation under or by virtue of the Short Selling Regulations 2025;

• “specified confidential EU law information” means confidential information received by the FCA or the PRA— before IP completion day in the course of discharging its functions as the competent authority under the relevant directives; orafter IP completion day in the course of exercising its functions in or under the Act or assimilated law which functions are equivalent to the functions as the competent authority set out in the relevant directives;

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• “third country regulatory authority” means— an authority in a country or territory outside the United Kingdom which exercises any function of a kind mentioned in section 195(4) of the Act;a third country investment exchange, a third country clearing house, a third country central counterparty (within the meaning of section 285(1)(d) of the Act) or a third country CSD (within the meaning of section 285(1)(g) of the Act); oran authority in a country or territory outside the United Kingdom which exercises any functions of a kind corresponding to a function of the Bank of England;

• “third country resolution authority” means an authority in a country or territory which is not, and does not form part of, the United Kingdom which exercises functions in relation to third country resolution action (within the meaning of section 89H of the Banking Act 2009 or within the meaning of paragraph 145 of Schedule 11 to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, as appropriate), including planning for such action, corresponding to one or more functions exercisable by the Bank of England pursuant to Part 1 of the Banking Act 2009 , the Bank Recovery and Resolution (No. 2) Order 2014 or Schedule 11 to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023;

• “UCITS information” means confidential information received by the FCA in the course of discharging its functions as the United Kingdom authority under the Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities Regulations 2011;

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any reference to an EU regulation, or part of an EU regulation, is to be read as a reference to that EU regulation, or that part of an EU regulation, as amended from time to time.

PART II — DISCLOSURE OF CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION GENERALLY

Disclosure by and to the Authority, the Secretary of State and the Treasury etc.

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• (1) A disclosure of confidential information is permitted when it is made to any person—

• (a) by one of the regulators or a regulator worker for the purposes of enabling or assisting the person making the disclosure to discharge any public functions of that regulator or (if different) the regulator worker;

• (b) by the Secretary of State or a Secretary of State worker for the purpose of enabling or assisting the person making the disclosure to discharge any public functions of the Secretary of State or (if different) of the Secretary of State worker;

• (c) by the Treasury for the purpose of enabling or assisting the Treasury to discharge any of their public functions;

• (d) by one of the regulators or a regulator worker to one of the other regulators or a regulator worker employed or instructed by one of the other regulators for the purpose of enabling or assisting the recipient to discharge any public functions of the regulator or (if different) the regulator worker.

• (2) A disclosure of confidential information is permitted when it is made by any primary recipient, or person obtaining the information directly or indirectly from a primary recipient, to one of the regulators, the Secretary of State or the Treasury for the purpose of enabling or assisting that regulator, the Secretary of State or the Treasury (as the case may be) to discharge any of its, his or their public functions.

• (3) Paragraphs (1) and (2) do not permit disclosure in contravention of any of the assimilated law restrictions.

Disclosure for the purposes of criminal proceedings and investigations

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A primary recipient of confidential information, or a person obtaining such information directly or indirectly from a primary recipient, is permitted to disclose such information to any person—

• (a) for the purposes of any criminal investigation whatever which is being or may be carried out, whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere;

• (b) for the purposes of any criminal proceedings whatever which have been or may be initiated, whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere; or

• (ba) for the purposes of any proceedings under Part 2, 3 or 4 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 which have been, or may be initiated;

• (c) for the purpose of initiating or bringing to an end any such investigation or proceedings, or of facilitating a determination of whether it or they should be initiated or brought to an end.

Disclosure for the purposes of certain other proceedings

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• (1) Subject to paragraphs (4) and (5), a primary recipient of confidential information, or a person obtaining such information directly or indirectly from a primary recipient, is permitted to disclose such information to—

• (a) a person mentioned in paragraph (3) for the purpose of initiating proceedings to which this regulation applies, or of facilitating a determination of whether they should be initiated; or

• (b) any person for the purposes of proceedings to which this regulation applies and which have been initiated, or for the purpose of bringing to an end such proceedings, or of facilitating a determination of whether they should be brought to an end.

• (2) A person mentioned in paragraph (3) (or a person who is employed by one of the regulators or the Secretary of State) is permitted to disclose confidential information to any person for a purpose mentioned in paragraph (1)(a).

• (3) The persons referred to in paragraphs (1)(a) and (2) are—

• (a) the regulators;

• (b) the Secretary of State; and

• (c) the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland.

• (4) This regulation does not permit the disclosure of information with a view to the institution of, or in connection with, proceedings of the kind referred to in paragraph (6)(e) to the extent that—