Our data shows the number of new whistleblowing reports we received between October and December 2021 and the type of allegations involved.
We assess every whistleblowing case we receive that falls within our remit, to inform our work and help us identify actual or potential harm. This could be harm to consumers, to markets, to the UK economy or to wider society.
What we can share
We know that greater transparency about the whistleblowing reports we receive is important and we are constantly striving to improve the information we make public.
However, our casework with firms will usually involve confidential information for the purposes of section 348 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA). So we are unlikely to be able to provide more information about particular cases.
Find out more about the information we can share[1].
Whistleblowing reports
Our Whistleblowing team receives reports by telephone, email, our online reporting form and post.
In 2021 Q4 (October-December), we received 279 new whistleblowing reports.
Chart
Data table
Figure 1 shows that we received most of the new reports in 2021 Q4 via the online reporting form.
A whistleblower can choose to remain anonymous when making a report through any of our reporting options. Whistleblowers need to feel comfortable when making a report so they can provide relevant and sufficient detail to help our review of their concerns.
Our Whistleblowing team reviews all reports to make sure we manage information from whistleblowers appropriately. We redirect any information we get from consumers or firms to other relevant teams to consider, such as our Supervision Hub.
Whistleblowing contact details
We accept both anonymous and identified whistleblowing reports.
Protecting the identities of the whistleblowers who contact us is vital. We understand they may be hesitant to share their personal information with us when making a disclosure.
When whistleblowers provide us with a way to contact them it can be helpful. We may contact the whistleblower to discuss their concerns further and understand how we can protect their identity while we carry out our work.
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Data table
Figure 2 shows that in most of the reports we received in 2021 Q4, whistleblowers provided us with their contact details.
Whistleblowing allegations
Every report we receive will contain one or more allegations of wrongdoing. We received 279 reports in this quarter, containing 525 allegations in total.
Typically, the reports we receive will contain allegations that fall under the following 5 overarching themes:
- treating customers fairly
- FSMA
- fitness and propriety
- culture
- compliance
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Data table
In Figure 3 we list the top 10 allegations made in whistleblowing reports in this period.
Data security refers to allegations of poor data handling or misuse within a firm or by an individual. Allegations may include the details of data breaches, or information about weak systems in place to deal with or prevent such breaches.
Our Supervision division typically assesses reports about data security, with each allegation considered separately. We will also share anonymised intelligence with the Information Commissioner’s Office where it is relevant.
Copyright
The data on this page is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence[2].