The FCA has advised the following.

“We issued the first phase of the Covid-19 Impact Survey in June-August 2020, covering around 23,500 firms. Since then, we have repeated this survey five more times. The survey has helped us obtain an accurate view of the impact of Covid-19 and supported our work to mitigate risks of harm to consumers, the market and competition within it.

We are now repeating this survey for a seventh time.

You will note the title of this data collection has been updated to more accurately reflect its purpose of giving us baseline financial resilience information for our firms. We have also taken the opportunity to simplify the format of the survey form to make for easier completion – so it will look a little different. The information we are asking firms to provide remains the same.

We are planning to send this survey to the relevant firms in Tranche 1, some of which may be members of your associations, on one of the following dates:

Batch 1: to be sent on 13 June 2022 – response due by 4 July 2022

Batch 2: to be sent on 14 June 2022 – response due by 5 July 2022

Batch 3: to be sent on 15 June 2022 – response due by 6 July 2022

Batch 4: to be sent on 17 June 2022 – response due by 8 July 2022 

We will send a warm up/introduction email to all the firms at least 1 week prior to them receiving the survey.

This survey will include 9 questions in total, designed to give us information about the following important areas:

• Liquidity/cash availability and needs
• Recent financial performance
• Scale of business activity

The survey will be sent to all firms in the following Tranche 1 portfolios unless they satisfy specific exclusion criteria:

• E-Money Issuer
• High Cost Lenders
• Payment Services Firm
• Peer-to-Peer lending platforms
• SIPP Operators
• Advisers and intermediaries
• Contracts for Differences (CFD) Providers
• Credit reference agencies and providers of credit information services
• Crowdfunders
• Custody Services
• Debt purchasers, debt collectors and debt administrators
• Mainstream Consumer Credit Lenders
• Personal and Commercial Lines Insurance Intermediaries
• Platforms
• Wealth Management

Firms will be emailed a link to complete the survey online (not through RegData). It is designed to be easy to complete even via a mobile phone and we expect that most firms will not need more than an hour to complete it. The link that we will send will be unique to each firm. If firms need a different individual within their organisation (or a consultant) to answer and submit the survey, the link can be forwarded to the required person.

Completion of the survey is mandatory under section 165 of the Financial Services & Markets Act (FSMA) 2000. We may exercise our powers under FSMA for firms who do not respond. We have designed this survey so that it is quick and simple to complete. However, if due to exceptional circumstances a firm cannot access its financial information, they will need to ensure that they complete the questions where the relevant information is available. 

At the FCA, our core responsibilities include protecting consumers and enhancing the integrity of the UK financial markets. We know that financial stresses can put additional pressure on firms and so we are seeking to understand the effect the current financial climate is having on the finances of the firms we regulate and to better guide our supervisory actions.”