What IT Support does an FCA regulated Financial Services Firm actually need to Stay Compliant?

An FCA regulated firm typically needs 6–8 core IT control areas in place to remain compliant, with most firms investing £100–£150 per user per month to cover security, documentation, monitoring and audit readiness. For a 25–50 user London financial services firm, compliance is not about tools alone — it’s about evidence, repeatability and accountability. The FCA expects firms to demonstrate ongoing control, not one-off fixes.

1. Security Controls Required by FCA Expectations

• Multi-Factor Authentication (100% user coverage)
• Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR)
• Email security & anti-phishing
• Secure configuration baselines
• Privileged access controls

2. Monitoring, Logging, and Incident Response

Process framework

• 24/7 monitoring (alerts + response)
• Incident response plan (documented & tested)
• Breach notification timelines
• Evidence retention (logs, alerts, actions)

3. Policies, Documentation, and Audit Evidence

Evidence framework

• Written IT & cyber policies (reviewed annually)
• Asset registers & access logs
• Risk assessments
• Supplier due diligence records
• Audit-ready documentation

4. Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery

Minimum expectations

• Documented BCP & DR plans
• Backup testing at least quarterly
• RTO/RPO definitions
• Cloud vs on-prem risk evaluation

5. Strategic Oversight (vCIO Function)

Why FCA firms need strategy:

• Annual IT risk review
• Technology roadmap aligned to regulation
• Board-level reporting
• Budget forecasting & risk justification

Example Wealth Management Firm with 40 staff

• Initial state: informal IT controls, audit anxiety
• Actions: security framework implemented, documentation created, monitoring enabled
• Result: improved audit outcomes, reduced regulatory risk, predictable monthly IT spend

Cloudscape provide

• Experience supporting FCA regulated companies
• Cybersecurity frameworks such as Cyber Essentials Plus, NIST and ISO
• vCIO service for board level reporting
• 24/7 Servicedesk
• Proven audit experience

Managed IT Support London – Managed IT Services – Cloudscape IT