UK Investment Complaints Rose 25% in Six Months. Firms Upheld About Half.
FCA data shows 1.85 million complaints in the first half of 2026. Investment complaints rose 25%, and securities and futures firms saw a 42% jump.
News commentary and opinion. Not financial advice.
What happened
On 22 October 2026 the Financial Conduct Authority published complaints data for January to June 2026. Firms reported 1.85 million complaints, up 6.3% from 1.74 million in the second half of 2025.
Firms upheld 54.8% of the complaints they closed, down from 55.5%. They paid £240 million in redress, up 1.8% from £236 million. Overall, 94.5% of complaints were closed within eight weeks. Current accounts remained the most complained-about product.
The aggregate tables show the sharpest moves in investments. Complaints about investment products rose from 54,278 to 67,935, an increase of 25.2%. Firms upheld 32,770 investment complaints, about half of those closed.
Firms the FCA classifies as securities and futures firms received 2,036 complaints, up from 1,434, a 42% rise. They upheld 437. Complaints they closed after more than eight weeks rose from 32 to 219.
Primary source: FCA complaints data: 2026 H1 · FCA aggregate complaints data 2026 H1 (XLSX)
The roast
Here is the part the marketing pages skip. The firm that receives a complaint is also the first judge of it. Securities and futures firms upheld 437 of the 1,653 complaints they closed. That is roughly one in four.
Across all investments, firms upheld about half. Our read: some complaint desks are more generous than others, and the client does not choose which one. We have written about that gap in FCA two-tier justice.
The slowdown worries us more than the volume. Late closures in that category went from 32 to 219 in six months. Eight weeks is a long time when your money is the subject of the dispute.
Why it matters to traders
- A UK licence does not end at the sign-up page. Check how a broker handles complaints before you fund an account. Our guide on how to choose a forex broker lists what to ask.
- If a withdrawal stalls, keep every message and date. Our page on withdrawal blocking patterns shows the delays we see most often.
- Firm-by-firm figures sit in the FCA tables linked above. Compare them with the brokers in our broker reviews before trusting any "regulated" badge.
FCA-regulated brokers we actually tested
- UltimaMarketsTrust Score 9.3/10
- VantageTrust Score 9.1/10
- PepperstoneTrust Score 9.0/10
- ExnessTrust Score 8.9/10
- OANDATrust Score 8.7/10
- Plus500Trust Score 8.5/10
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Disclaimer: This is news commentary and reflects the opinion of ForexRoasted. It is not financial or investment advice. Trading CFDs and Forex involves substantial risk and is not for every investor.