How to check if a company is FCA registered (and not a clone)

Why it matters

Almost all firms offering financial services in the UK must be authorised or registered by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). That covers banks, lenders, investment firms, insurers and plenty more. Dealing with an authorised firm doesn't guarantee you'll make money, but it does mean the firm has to follow rules, you can usually complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service if it goes wrong, and some products come with compensation protection.

Dealing with an unauthorised firm means none of that. If the money vanishes, there's usually nobody to complain to and nothing to claim from.

Step 1: go to the FCA Firm Checker yourself

The FCA's search tool is called the FCA Firm Checker. Type the address in yourself or search for it. The FCA is very clear that you should never click a link to it from an email, a text or the firm's own website, because scammers build fake copies.

Step 2: search for the firm and read the whole entry

Search by the firm's name or its Firm Reference Number (FRN). Then actually read the entry, don't just see a green tick and stop. Check:

• Status: is it authorised or registered right now, or is it "no longer authorised"?
• What it's allowed to do: a firm authorised for insurance isn't automatically allowed to manage your investments.
• Contact details: the phone number, email and website on the register.

Step 3: match the contact details (this is where clones get caught)

A clone firm is a scam that pretends to be a real, authorised firm. It copies the real firm's name, address and even its FRN, then gives you different contact details: a different phone number, a mobile number, a new email address or a website that's one letter off.

So the key step is this: only contact the firm using the details on the register, not the ones in the message, the advert or the call. The FCA advises checking that the FRN and contact details you've been given match the details on the Firm Checker. If they don't match, treat it as a scam until proven otherwise.

Step 4: check the Warning List

The FCA also keeps a Warning List of firms it knows are operating without permission or running scams. Search it too. Being missing from the Warning List doesn't mean a firm is safe (scammers set up new names constantly), but being on it is a very loud alarm.

Step 5: still not sure? Ask the FCA

You can call the FCA consumer helpline on 0800 111 6768 and they can help you check whether a firm is genuine. That's a free call, and asking is never a silly question.

Crypto and finfluencers: a special warning

Cryptoassets are high risk, and if you buy them you're unlikely to have the Financial Ombudsman or FSCS protection people expect from a bank. A finfluencer promoting a "trading course" or a "signals group" is not the same as a regulated firm, and being popular on TikTok is not a licence. Our lessons Who's protecting you? (Nobody) and Finfluencer red flags go deeper.

What protection do you actually get?

If you hold money in a UK bank, building society or credit union that's authorised, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protects eligible deposits up to £120,000 per person, per authorised firm if the firm fails. Investments have different rules, and investments can fall in value: compensation doesn't cover a normal loss. Check the FSCS site for what's covered. Our lesson Is my savings pot safe? explains the basics.

Red flags that mean "stop checking, it's a scam"

• Guaranteed returns, or returns that sound too good ("2% a day", "double your money").
• Pressure to decide today, or a "bonus" that disappears tonight.
• Being contacted out of the blue by phone, DM or WhatsApp group.
• Being asked to pay in crypto, gift cards or to a personal account.
• Being told to keep it quiet or to lie to your bank.

The bit to remember

Two minutes on the FCA Firm Checker, using the contact details from the register, beats two years trying to get your money back. The whole crypto, hype and finfluencers library is free if you want to build the instinct.