The FCA is proposing to introduce a UK equity consolidated tape to boost investment and liquidity in equity markets.
As part of the regulator’s priority to support growth, the equity tape would collate data from multiple trading venues to provide investors with a clear view of the market and its liquidity to encourage market participation.
The new framework aims to:
- Improve market effectiveness by providing a clear, consistent view of trading volumes and prices across UK venues
- Support UK listings by giving firms and investors a more complete picture of liquidity in UK equity markets
- Increase participation in UK markets by ensuring easy and affordable access to market data, supporting liquidity
- Strengthen international competitiveness by enabling informed comparisons of liquidity with major financial centres including the US and EU
The FCA has launched a consultation on the proposals following extensive market engagement and is seeking feedback on introducing a tape that includes both pre-trade data and post-trade data across UK trading venues. The consultation closes on 30 January 2026.
With timely implementation in mind, the regulator is aiming to make the equity tape operational by 2027 and plans to review the framework's effectiveness after two years, including whether pre-trade data levels should be varied.
Simon Walls, interim executive director of markets at the FCA, said: “UK markets offer diverse trading options which can be great for competition, choice, and lowering trading fees. But this landscape makes it harder to assess liquidity as a whole in our markets.
“The equity consolidated tape seeks to tackle this challenge head on by delivering more straightforward access to equity market data from across venues, supporting better decisions and boosting market participation.”
