'We will do more' says FSA chief as fines triple

Fines levied by the City watchdog nearly tripled during 2010 to a record £89 million as the regulator stepped up enforcement action in the wake of the financial crisis.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) imposed the largest fines in its history on JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, while it also banned 60 people from working in the financial sector.

The figure for penalties this year compares with 35m in fines in 2009 and come as the FSA prepares for its own dis- solution with the creation of the planned Consumer Protection and Markets Authority (CPMA).

It is broadly in line with projections given in October when it emerged that the end-of-year figure was likely to be about three times higher than last year's tally.

Margaret Cole, the FSA's current head of enforcement, is hotly tipped as one of the frontrunners for the top job at the CPMA, although no appointment has yet been made.

Under Cole, the FSA handed its biggest ever fine of 33m to JP Morgan earlier this year after the bank failed to keep client money in separate accounts.

Cole said the FSA was "committed to keeping the markets clean and trustworthy", adding it would keep a "sharp focus" on consumer protection. "So there is still a lot to do and in 2011 we will do more," she said.

The FSA said it had written to 95,000 people this year to warn them off so-called boiler room share fraudsters, such as scams involving fake shares.