Regulatory Collaboration or Regulatory Theatre? What Productive Engagement Should Look Like in UK Finance

UK financial services is entering a period where regulators are asking firms to be faster, safer, more innovative and more accountable at the same time. The FCA’s 2025–2030 strategy explicitly links growth, trust, competitiveness and better outcomes, while its 2026/27 work programme points to more coordinated engagement with firms and clearer sector priorities. That creates a useful question for compliance leaders: what does good regulatory collaboration actually look like when the pressure is no longer just to understand the rules, but to evidence better outcomes?