Enforcement decisions in banking regulation and supervision

Abstract

The prominence of the City of London in terms of international finance and the importance of this business to the whole economy place the enforcement policy of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) under the spotlight. This is particularly evident with bank-financial conglomerates, where banking institutions have traditionally experienced a unique form of supervision and enforcement decision making. In the light of international practice, however, and now with the FSA responsible for supervision and enforcement, a more proactive and pragmatic approach has been adopted, thus highlighting the fact that publicity of such decisions does not necessarily lead to the demise of banks.