Lead Enforcement Investigators
Job Details
Full Job Description
Lead Enforcement Investigators
Salary: £59,800 - £79,800 for a Regulatory role and £71,400- £88,000 for a Practising Legal role dependent on the level of experience.
The FCA’s Enforcement and Market Oversight (EMO) is recruiting for investigators (including Lawyers and Accountants) at Lead Associate level . There are vacancies in each of the EMO investigation departments; Retail and Regulatory, Wholesale and Unauthorised Business.
The team / department
EMO investigates misconduct in financial services that impacts UK consumers and the financial markets . We bring regulatory, civil and criminal cases against firms and individuals to punish wrongdoers , d eter others from wrongdoing and change behaviours . Effective , fair and impactful enforcement is critical to the success of the FCA .
The FCA receives reports from many different sources that indicate potential misconduct and we are continually presented with challenging and intellectually stimulating cases. Our cases involve critical issues that matters to consumers and market participants and attract large scale media attention. Our work covers a diverse range of issues including fraudulent conduct, systems and control and corporate governance failings, market abuse and product mis-selling.
Working in E MO at the FCA is a great career option if you have a strong sense of public duty and are motivated to do the right thing and make a positive difference to the lives of consumers and the UK financial market generally .
Meet the departments :
Retail and Regulatory Investigations (RRI)
RRI i nvestigate s potential misconduct by regulated firms , and individuals working within those firms , involved in retail banking, stockbroking, asset management, mortgage broking and lending, insurance intermediation, financial advice, consumer credit and payment services . We take action against firms that sell unsuitable products or services to consumers, mishandle client money and assets, or have governance and systemic issues . We also investigate financial crime matters including fraud and misconduct related to AML systems and controls.
Wholesale
The Wholesale department ensure s that suspected wrongdoing in the wholesale financial markets is investigated and where serious misconduct by firms and/or individuals is identified they are held to account. Our i nvestigation teams undertake criminal, civil, and regulatory investigations spanning insider dealing, market manipulation, misleading statements by listed companies and systems and controls failings.
Unauthorised Business Department (UBD)
UBD investigates firms that are not authorised by the FCA but are carrying out activities that require authorisation . Unauthorised firms pose a significant risk to consumers – UBD has civil and criminal powers to tackle these firms and protect consumers . UBD cases typically involve high- loss investment /Ponzi type frauds , illegal trading schemes and boiler room operations .
What you will be doing (the role)
Lead Associates are senior members of our case team s and play a vital role throughout the wider department. As a Lead Associate ;
You will play a leading role in t he largest most serious and comp lex investigations across EMO and be accountable for and regularly report on progress internally and manage your own cases
You will be involved in all aspects of investigations from strateg ic planning , delegating tasks within the team, ob taining evidence using appropriate powers , drafting and reviewing all forms of documents, leading interviews of subjects and witnesses , analysing evidence and making judgements and recommendations throughout the lifetime of an investigation
You will have direct line management and mentoring responsibility for junior colleagues
You will be a role model within your team , always willing to share your knowledge and expertise
You will lead o n Departmental or Divisional Corporate Projects which are designed to support and improve our processes and systems and the way that we work
You will b uild and maintain effective working relationships with senior colleagues in other areas within the FCA and with counterparts at key external stakeholders
You will support your case team manager and have opportunities to deputise for them
Legally qualified candidates in this role would also be expected to provide legal advice to the case team and where appropriate take responsibility for the preparation of privileged correspondence
What you will get from the role:
Exposure to some of the most fascinating, challenging and rewarding investigations in the UK
A chance to work with colleagues from across EMO and other parts of the FCA
Satisfying, worthwhile and responsible work with the opportunity to use your skills in complex situations
Exposure to a range of senior internal and external stakeholders .
Working in a high-energy and stimulating Division, within a supportive environment
The opportunity to help develop junior colleagues and positively contribute to the development of their career
If you are successful, we will set you up for success . Your manager will work with you to help you meet your professional goals . In your first six months you will attend a three-week investigators foundation course which will ensure, if you have displayed your investigation or advisory uccessfully in the context of the FCA’s approach to investigations.
Our competitive flexible benefits scheme gives you the opportunity to create a personalised benefits package, tailored to suit your lifecycle. You can use this allowance to purchase additional benefits such as dental or cycle to work or you have the option top up your base salary by taking this as cash.
Core benefits that you will receive as standard are:
25 days holiday per year plus bank holidays
Private healthcare with Bupa
A non-contributory Pension of at least 8% of basic salary each month (there are several contribution levels that increase depending on your age – up to 12% a month once you reach age 35)
Life assurance of eight times your basic salary
Income protection
We support hybrid working which means you will be able to work from home up to 60% of the time over a month with the remainder of your time in one of our three office locations.
The skills and experience you will have :
Minimum criteria
We are a signatory to the Government’s Disability Confident scheme. This means that we will offer an interview to disabled candidates entering under the scheme, should they meet the minimum criteria for a role.
Demonstrable significant ability leading on significant aspects of highly complex investigations or litigation w ithin a criminal, civil or regulatory environment
Ability to line manage , direct the work of and coach colleagues, monitoring their progress against deadlines and managing operational risks
Ability to analyse large amounts of information, drawing out key findings and producing formal written reports including making recommendations
For Lawyer applicants you must hold a valid practising certificate issued by the Solicitors Regulation Authority for England and Wales (if a solicitor), or the General Council of the Bar for England and Wales (if a barrister) (or a similar internationally recognised qualification).
Essential criteria
M anag e and driv e forward complex investigations involving large volumes of documents / data
D evelop , motivat e and coach more junior colleagues
B uild and maintain strong and effective relationships with colleagues in other business units and with external bodies
W ork collaboratively and inclusively with colleagues with different perspectives and backgrounds
Make clear, concise, logical and persuasive oral and written presentations on complex subjects
Desirable criteria
Knowledge of the financial services industry including what you have gained from conducting investigations involving firms and consumers who are within or engage with the industry
Investigating fraud and financial crime
Information gathering techniques such as us e of compelled powers, interviews and / or search warrants
Line management
About the FCA
The FCA regulates the conduct of 50,000 firms in the UK to ensure our financial markets are honest, fair and competitive. We do this to make sure markets work well for individuals, businesses and the economy as a whole. For more information on what we do, our three-year strategy can be found here.
The FCA's Values & Diversity
Our ambition is to cultivate a culture of inclusion for all employees that respects their individual strengths, views, and experiences. We believe that our differences and similarities enable us to be a better organisation – one that makes better decisions, drives innovation, and delivers better regulation.
The FCA is committed to achieving greater diversity across all levels of the organisations. Given this, we particularly welcome applications from women, disabled and minority ethnic candidates for our Lead Associate role.
Flexible working
We welcome applications from candidates who are looking for flexible arrangements. Many of our staff work flexibly including working part-time, staggered hours, and job shares. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want but we won’t judge you for asking.
> Multi-location As part of the FCA’s on-going commitment to develop our national presence, most of our vacancies are now open to working in our Edinburgh, Leeds, or London offices. This means that as part of the application process you will be able to select your preference of which office location you would like to work from.
Useful information
Applications for this role close at 23:59 on the 29th September 2023.
The role is graded as Lead Associate Regulatory / Practising Legal
Got a question?
If you are interested in learning more about the role please contact:
For internal applicants, please contact Michael Wood
For external applicants, please contact Michael Wood
What to expect from our interview process
The assessment process consists of an initial screening call with one our Recruitment Partners. If successful, you will be invited to attend a one stage case study as well as a technical and competency based interview.
Please note that all applications must be submitted through our online portal, applications sent via email will not be accepted.
Lead Enforcement Investigators
FCA
All Direct Job Ads are subject to WhatJobs Terms of Service. We allow users to flag postings that may be in violation of those terms. Job Ads may also be flagged by WhatJobs. However, no moderation system is perfect, and flagging a posting does not ensure that it will be removed.