The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a package of FCA asset management reforms on 14 July 2026, proposing to replace the EU-derived reporting framework that has governed UK fund managers since 2013 with a system built around consolidated data sets, proportionate size thresholds, and a streamlined rulebook. The regulator said the changes would save the industry £128m a year.
The bulk of those savings are expected to flow from a proposed new reporting framework called Fund Reporting for Asset Management Entities (FRAME), published as Consultation Paper CP26/26. FRAME would replace the granular data fields required under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD), which date to 2013, with consolidated datasets that monitor wider market risk.
Three Consultation Papers Form the FCA Asset Management Reforms Package
The FCA simultaneously published two further papers alongside CP26/26. CP26/27 covers remuneration reform for solo-regulated firms, including full-scope Alternative Investment Fund Managers, UCITS management companies, and non-SNI MIFIDPRU investment firms; its deadline for responses is 16 September 2026. CP26/28 addresses the broader UK AIFM Regime; responses are due by 14 October 2026.
The FRAME consultation closes on 22 September 2026. The FCA expects to publish final rules in a policy statement in the first half of 2027, with full implementation targeted for 2028. Prototype reporting forms are expected to be made available for industry testing before the end of 2026.
Simon Walls, executive director of markets at the FCA, said: ‘By tailoring the regime for UK asset managers, we can collect better data while also saving the industry tens of millions of pounds a year. With a sharp focus on proportionality, we can particularly boost freedom for smaller firms.’
NAV Replaces Leveraged AUM as the Basis for Size Classification
A core change in CP26/28 is the replacement of the current small and full-scope UK AIFM distinction, which uses a leveraged assets-under-management threshold, with three new categories based on net asset value (NAV). Proposed thresholds are: Small (up to £750m NAV), Medium (£750m to £5bn NAV), and Large (over £5bn NAV).
Small firms would face lighter requirements and minimal paperwork. Large firms, which carry greater potential to affect the wider economy, would face more rigorous scrutiny. The shift from leveraged AUM to NAV is expected to reduce the number of firms subject to the most onerous requirements, according to CMS Law.
The proposals also remove the cliff-edge effect under the existing regime, where a firm breaching a NAV threshold would immediately lose its status and be forced into a costly structural change.
CP26/28 also proposes a new ALTS sourcebook to consolidate relevant rules for alternative investment fund managers, replacing the patchwork of existing requirements inherited from the EU framework.
On remuneration, CP26/27 proposes replacing overlapping remuneration codes with a clearer, more proportionate framework for FCA-regulated firms, while maintaining appropriate standards and safeguards.
The July 2026 package builds on a Discussion Paper the FCA published in 2023 (DP23/2: ‘Updating and improving the UK regime for asset management’), a Call for Input in 2025 on the future regulation of alternative fund managers, and a series of roundtables and bilateral meetings with firms and trade bodies.
Industry reaction has been broadly positive. Jock Glover, chief executive of Independent Investment Management Initiative, said: ‘Measures that simplify reporting requirements, reduce unnecessary administrative burden and provide firms with greater flexibility should allow management teams to spend more time focused on delivering good outcomes for clients and less on reporting and processes that add limited value.’
Romin Dabir, partner at Reed Smith, said the reforms would remove barriers that had prevented smaller managers from entering the UK market. ‘The proposed new regime for the authorisation and supervision of the managers of private capital… looks to be consistent with the FCA’s new growth and competitiveness objective,’ Dabir said. He described the shift as a return to ‘more outcomes-based supervision.’
An overview of the FRAME reporting framework is available via Fund XP, while broader context on the three-paper package is summarised by Ocorian. The final shape of FRAME, and whether any elements can be introduced ahead of the 2028 target, will depend on how firms respond to the prototype reporting forms expected later this year.
