Key Trends and Takeaways From the FCA’s 2024 STOR Report

In line with its transparent approach to monitoring fair markets, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) released its annual report on March 27, 2025, detailing the number of suspicious transaction and order reports (STORs) it received in 2024. The total filed—4,527 STORS—remains consistent with previous years, underscoring stable reporting levels in the UK. As expected, equity transactions dominated the report, while other asset classes were flagged less frequently.

Key findings

• Equities: The majority of STORs (3,944) related to equity transactions, with over 90% citing concerns around insider dealing.
• Fixed Income: A total of 134 STORs were reported, primarily for insider dealing.
• Commodities and FX: Although lower in volume, occasional spikes were observed in market manipulation cases.

Interestingly, while the UK’s STOR reporting levels remain stable, Europe has experienced a steady increase in recent years.

Staying ahead of regulatory expectations

While overall STOR volumes have remained steady, the FCA’s focus continues to evolve, as evidenced in recent Market Watch updates. The fact that insider dealing accounts for over 90% of the STOR reports aligns with the FCA’s concerns about material non-public information (MNPI) misuse, insufficient surveillance coverage, and communications monitoring gaps.

The updates also indicate that the regulator is looking beyond volume metrics to assess the effectiveness, rationale, and scope of surveillance programs. Firms need to be proactive refining their compliance frameworks, including adopting more automation across surveillance programs, Personal Account Dealing (PAD) systems, trade surveillance, expert network tracking, trade monitoring, and e-communications oversight.

Our guidance

To stay aligned with FCA expectations and mitigate market abuse risks, firms should:

• Benchmark their risk assessment and STOR frameworks against FCA data and Market Watch insights.
• Regularly review system calibrations and exception thresholds.
• Ensure seamless integration of PAD systems, expert network tracking, and e-communications monitoring to surface MNPI risks.
• Assess whether fixed income and other less-flagged asset classes are appropriately surveilled.

By leveraging the FCA’s data and continuously refining their surveillance frameworks, firms can strengthen their ability to detect and prevent market abuse —supporting regulatory compliance and protecting market integrity.

How we help

Our ComplianceAlpha^® platform streamlines compliance operations with automation for market abuse surveillance, personal trading oversight, and electronic communications monitoring.

By reducing manual workloads and improving accuracy, ComplianceAlpha empowers your team to focus on strategic initiatives that drive business growth. Join over 1,250 firms worldwide that trust ACA’s expertise.

Contact us today to learn how our innovative solutions can transform your compliance strategy and support long-term success.

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