Change in control
Support with change in control notifications to the FCA, including section 178 notices, the controller forms, and the supporting information required.
⚠ UNSIGNED-OFF COPY. This page was written during the build so the section could exist and its routes could resolve. It makes no claim about outcomes, timescales, prices or the FCA’s decisions, but claim-free is not the same as signed off. Recorded at
docs/content-removals-for-review.md § 7.
Where someone acquires or increases control of an authorised firm, that change has to be notified to the FCA and approved before it takes effect. The obligation sits with the person acquiring control, not only with the firm.
What counts as control
Control is measured by holdings of shares or voting power, and by the ability to exercise significant influence. The thresholds are set out in Part XII of FSMA 2000, and increases through a threshold are notifiable in the same way an initial acquisition is.
What it involves
- Establishing who the controllers are, including indirect and joint holdings
- The section 178 notice, and the controller forms appropriate to the acquirer
- Supporting information on the acquirer’s financial position, reputation and source of funds
- Managing the assessment period through to approval
Why the sequence matters
Completing an acquisition before approval is a breach by the acquirer, and it is not cured by notifying afterwards. Transactions involving an authorised firm are planned around the assessment period rather than the other way round.