The UK will hand anti-money laundering oversight for professional services to the Financial Conduct Authority, as Chancellor Rachel Reeves launches what she calls a “blitz on pointless admin.” Reeves announced that the regulator will become the Single Professional Services Supervisor (SPSS) for anti-money laundering, consolidating supervision that now sits across multiple professional bodies. The move forms part of a wider push to streamline business rules and, according to the Chancellor, save £6bn a year by 2029. Ministers say the change will reduce duplication, create clearer standards, and improve enforcement across law, accountancy, and other professional services. Industry groups will look for firm timelines, funding details, and clarity on how the FCA will work with existing regulators to avoid disruption as the new model takes shape.
Context and timing
Reeves unveiled the plan on Wednesday, 22 October 2025, at a Regional Investment Summit in the UK. The announcement sits within a broader package of measures aimed at cutting bureaucracy for businesses and unlocking investment.
Image Source: Financial Times
FCA named as Single Professional Services Supervisor
The government will appoint the FCA as the Single Professional Services Supervisor for anti-money laundering. This change will centralise oversight that professional body supervisors currently handle across legal, accountancy, and related sectors. Today, several bodies supervise anti-money laundering compliance, including the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. The FCA already supervises banks, insurers, and other financial firms under the UK’s money laundering regulations. By placing professional services supervision under a single roof, the government aims to align standards, remove overlap, and strengthen enforcement.
Officials argue that a single supervisor can set consistent expectations and deliver uniform inspections and sanctions. That consistency could help firms navigate rules with less cost and confusion. It could also make it easier for authorities to identify risks across the system. The government framed the reform as a way to raise compliance quality while stripping out repetitive reporting and duplicated audits that drain time and money.
Why ministers want a simpler AML regime
The UK’s anti-money laundering framework has grown complex over time. Professional body supervisors number in the dozens, with varied approaches to risk, supervision, and enforcement. Since 2018, the FCA has overseen those bodies through the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS). OPBAS has pushed for better consistency, but differences remain. Reviews have pointed to uneven standards, gaps in data, and slow escalation of serious non-compliance. Those issues raise costs for compliant firms and can leave weak spots for criminals to exploit.
Reeves linked the restructuring to a plan to boost growth and investment. By cutting duplicative rules and creating a single point of contact for professional services, the Treasury expects to reduce red tape while raising effectiveness. The £6bn annual savings target by 2029 sits across the government’s wider deregulation agenda. The AML change forms one pillar of that effort. The Treasury will need to show how the reform delivers both savings and stronger outcomes, and it will face scrutiny from Parliament, industry, and international partners.
What it could mean for law and accountancy firms
Law firms, accountants, and trust and company service providers face regular checks on client due diligence, risk assessments, and suspicious activity reporting. Under a single supervisor, firms could see one rulebook, one approach to inspections, and streamlined reporting. Many compliance teams may welcome fewer overlapping requests and clearer guidance on high-risk sectors and red flags. A unified approach may also speed up updates when risks change, such as new sanctions or emerging typologies.
However, the shift also raises practical questions. Firms will want to know how the FCA will take over responsibilities from existing professional bodies, and how it will handle sector-specific nuances. Legal privilege in the legal sector, assurance practices in accountancy, and the diversity of small practices all require tailored supervision. The FCA will need to recruit or redeploy specialist staff, build data systems that capture sector risks, and set a proportionate fee model. Smaller firms will watch the cost of any new levy and the scale of any new reporting obligations.
Implementation, legislation, and transition
The government will need legislation to confirm the FCA’s remit as the SPSS for professional services. Officials will set out the scope, timetable, and funding arrangements. A formal consultation would allow firms, professional bodies, and civil society to raise concerns and suggest improvements. Clear transitional plans matter. The government must keep current supervisory cases moving, protect whistleblowers, and preserve data gathered by existing supervisors. It must also prevent a “supervisory gap,” where enforcement slows during handover.
The FCA will likely publish guidance and hold industry briefings once the Treasury sets the direction in law. It will need to integrate AML supervision of professional services with its current financial sector work without diluting either. Coordination with law enforcement, HM Revenue & Customs, the National Crime Agency, and Companies House remains vital. The success of the new model will depend on how well these agencies share intelligence, prioritise high-risk activity, and act quickly on serious breaches.
Links to broader economic crime reforms
The reform lands as the UK continues to tighten its wider economic crime framework. Parliament has already acted to upgrade company transparency and improve the tools that authorities use to tackle illicit finance. In that context, a single supervisor for professional services aims to close remaining gaps in oversight and improve data quality. Better, faster information can help agencies spot patterns, connect cross-border cases, and protect the UK’s reputation as a clean place to do business.
International partners judge systems not only on laws, but also on how well supervisors apply them. Clear lines of responsibility and consistent enforcement can lift the UK’s standing in global assessments and support cross-border cooperation. For businesses, credible supervision can reduce the risk of sudden rule changes and last-minute compliance scrambles. For investors, it can build confidence that the UK manages financial crime risks effectively.
Business burden, savings, and accountability
Reeves has tied the AML change to measurable savings by 2029. To meet that promise, departments will need to remove duplicate reports and align data requests across regulators. A single supervisor can design standard templates and schedules that limit ad hoc demands. It can also streamline training expectations and certification, so firms do not repeat the same tasks for different bodies. Transparent metrics will matter. The government and the FCA will need to report on costs, inspection outcomes, and enforcement results to prove the model works.
Accountability will sit at the heart of the new regime. Firms will expect due process, clear guidance, and proportionate sanctions. The public will expect action where firms enable illicit finance. Professional bodies, even if they lose direct supervisory roles, still hold disciplinary functions and standards for their members. The government will need to set out how those roles interact with the FCA’s new remit to avoid gaps or duplication.
Wrap-up
The decision to appoint the FCA as the Single Professional Services Supervisor marks a significant shift in the UK’s fight against illicit finance. Reeves promises a “blitz on pointless admin” and a path to £6bn in annual savings by 2029. Centralising supervision aims to simplify rules, improve consistency, and sharpen enforcement across law and accountancy. The benefits could be real: clearer standards, less duplication, and stronger outcomes. Yet the plan’s success will rest on detail. Ministers must legislate, manage a careful transition, and resource the FCA to handle a wider brief. Firms will watch costs, timelines, and guidance closely. If the government delivers a smooth handover and measurable results, the reform could cut red tape while raising the UK’s resilience against money laundering.
