The Financial Services Authority (FSA) issues today new rules and guidelines on six (6) areas covered by the Financial Services Act of 2010 that concern the agency.

The highlights of the said implementing rules concern the agency’s use of its power (1) to impose financial penalties or public censure on those who breach short-selling rules, (2) to suspend firms or individuals from undertaking activities they are permitted to do for a period of time, (3) to impose financial penalties on individuals who have carried out controlled functions without  FSA approval and (4) to gather information in relation to financial stability from specified categories of both authorized and unauthorized persons to help identify potential threats to the UK financial market. The new rules also focus on (5) disclosure of important net short positions; and (6)  on changing fees in relation to the contribution of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) to the costs associated with resolutions under the Banking Act of 2009.

Last but not the least, the new guidelines also tackle on the amendments of the fees in relation to the contribution of Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) on the costs associated with the resolutions of cases under the Banking Act of 2009, as well as on the proposal to allow FSCS to recover management expenses from levy payers when it is acting for another scheme.

(Source: http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Library/Communication/PR/2010/123.shtml)