A New Resource for Growing Financial Firms
In October 2025, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), in partnership with the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), launched the Scale-Up Unit — a dedicated initiative designed to support fast-growing, innovative regulated firms as they navigate the complexities of scaling in the UK financial services market.
What Is the Scale-Up Unit?
The Scale-Up Unit is a joint venture between the FCA and PRA aimed at providing enhanced regulatory support to firms experiencing rapid growth. Recognising that scaling businesses often face unique challenges in understanding and complying with evolving regulatory requirements, the Scale-Up Unit offers tailored assistance to help these firms manage their growth effectively while ensuring compliance with regulatory standards.
Key Areas of Support
The Scale-Up Unit focuses on several critical areas to assist scaling firms:
- Regulatory Processes: Helping firms understand which regulatory processes are relevant to their scaling plans and coordinating interactions with regulators ahead of and during formal submissions, such as variation of permission applications.
- Product Innovations: Supporting early-stage discussions for firms looking to launch new or innovative products or services, ensuring they understand the corresponding regulatory treatment.
- Impact of New Policy Proposals: Engaging with scaling firms to gather feedback on new policy proposals that may impact them, feeding this information into the FCA’s and PRA’s policy-making processes.
- Sector Engagement: Facilitating ongoing dialogue between regulators, firms, and the wider scale-up ecosystem to ensure a collaborative approach to addressing the challenges faced by scaling firms.
Who Can Access the Scale-Up Unit?
Initially, the Scale-Up Unit is focusing on dual-regulated firms, including:
- Banks and building societies
- Insurers
These firms will receive dedicated supervisory support from the Scale-Up Unit. The FCA is also working closely with industry stakeholders to develop the Scale-Up Unit further, with plans to extend support to FCA solo-regulated firms in the future. Details regarding eligibility and access for solo-regulated firms will be shared in Spring 2026.
How It Differs from Existing Services
The Scale-Up Unit complements, but does not replace, existing support services for firms. It is designed to:
- Provide a dedicated point of contact for scaling firms
- Offer tailored support for navigating regulatory challenges specific to scaling
- Facilitate early engagement on new product developments and policy proposals
However, it is important to note that the Scale-Up Unit:
- Does not fast-track applications
- Does not guarantee positive regulatory decisions
- Does not provide regulatory comfort or endorsements
Why It Matters for Consumer Credit Firms
For consumer credit firms, especially those experiencing rapid growth or planning to expand into new sectors, the Scale-Up Unit offers a valuable resource. Scaling in the consumer credit space often involves complex regulatory considerations, including:
- Adapting to changing regulatory requirements as the firm grows
- Navigating the regulatory landscape when expanding into new products or services
- Managing the impact of new policy proposals on the business
The Scale-Up Unit provides dedicated support to help firms address these challenges, ensuring they can scale effectively while maintaining compliance with regulatory standards.
Next Steps
Consumer credit firms interested in engaging with the Scale-Up Unit should:
- Review the FCA’s Scale-Up Unit webpage for detailed information on eligibility and support available
- Prepare to engage with the Scale-Up Unit as it expands its offerings to solo-regulated firms in Spring 2026
- Stay informed about developments and opportunities to provide feedback on the Scale-Up Unit’s services