FCA makes changes to streamline its transparency rules on structured digital reporting of financial statements
04 Aug, 2023
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published ‘Handbook Notice 111’ which makes changes to streamline its transparency rules for certain companies with securities admitted to UK regulated markets to prepare, publish and file with the FCA their annual financial report in a specific web browser format (XHTML), and to present the financial statements in it in the structured digital format.
Structured digital reporting can improve transparency of market disclosures by applying 'tags' to information. This makes it easier for market participants to extract, compare and analyse it. This supports efficient price formation and investors' decision making.
The changes were originally consulted on in Consultation Paper (CP) 23/2 in January 2023. In CP23/2 the FCA proposed to simplify the structure of its current rules by:
- simplifying the content and arrangements of its existing requirements by revoking the Technical Standard where they were currently set out, and including the key provisions directly into its Disclosure, Guidance and Transparency Rules sourcebook (DTRs);
- making a new rule in DTRs requiring issuers to tag their annual financial statements (where they are prepared in accordance with IFRS Accounting Standards) using a ‘generally accepted taxonomy’ for annual corporate reporting in UK regulated markets;
- issuing guidance on ‘generally accepted taxonomies’ in a new Technical Note on its website.
The FCA’s changes are broadly as consulted with some minor adjustments to the DTR Sourcebook and Technical Note. The final rules apply to financial years starting on or after 1 January 2022.
Handbook Notice 111 setting out the FCA’s final rules and feedback received on the consultation and the new Technical Note are available on the FCA website.
