The regulator has taken the first steps to make good on the pledge it made as part of Her Majesty’s Treasury ‘Women in Finance’ charter back in July, which strives to build a more balanced workforce in financial services.
By 2020, the FCA said it aspires to have a senior leadership team that comprised of 45% of individuals who identify as female. Five years later, the UK regulator hopes to boost that figure to exactly half.
The FCA also said it will ensure 8% of the senior leadership team is BAME by 2020, and 13% by 2025.
Fund houses like Aberdeen Asset Management, BlackRock, Schroders and Hermes Investment Management, as well as life companies like Standard Life, who were also among the WIF charter’s initial 72 signatories, have also released female representation goals of their own since signing up to the initiative.
Following disclosures of initial gender diversity objectives made by the signatories, firms will need to report progress against these targets in October 2017, HM Treasury has said.
The exchequer will then compile the data and publish an annual review to assess the success of the initiative.
Andrew Bailey CEO of the FCA said he was “proud of the FCA’s work to date on diversity” and stressed that “a workplace which combines talented people and diverse backgrounds is the best sort.”
“Every day we make judgements and decisions that impact almost everyone in the UK so it’s vital that our people reflect the society that we serve,” he said.
“Setting targets for the FCA Senior Leadership Team to be representative of the female and BAME UK populations is a logical next step.
“Encouraging diverse attitudes and opinions in our daily work makes us a stronger and more effective regulator,” he added.
In addition to slotting more women in senior positions, the FCA also has an Executive Diversity Committee in place, another edict of the WIF charter.
The EDC has senior level responsibility for taking forward the FCA’s plans and activities regarding equality, diversity and inclusion, the firm said.
The FCA is also in the top 40 of Stonewall’s top 100 LGBT friendly employers.
