Policy RoundUp - April 2026

In the UK, the FCA progressed changes to the short selling regime and consulted on IPO research rules, aimed at improving market structure, transparency and capital raising efficiency. Meanwhile, reporting reform debates continued internationally, with the SEC’s proposals on semi annual reporting reviving questions around reporting burden and long termism, while the EU is proposing revisions to ESRS standards focused on operability, proportionality and usability.

Below are the key highlights for IR teams including 'key takeaways', followed by detailed items and links if you would like to explore any of the developments in more depth. 

HIGHLIGHTS

CAPITAL MARKETS & PRIVATE CAPITAL

• UK retail investment campaign launched. Industry‑led initiative backed by HM Treasury and the FCA aims to encourage long‑term retail participation.
• Risk Warnings Review promotes more proportionate retail messaging. Calls for clearer, more balanced explanations of risk and reward.
• FCA finalises UK short selling reforms. New regime seeks to improve transparency while reducing complexity.
• FCA consults on IPO research rules. Proposed changes aim to reduce friction in the UK listing process.
• FCA review highlights liquidity impact of prolonged market soundings. Findings relevant for issuers planning equity transactions.
• UK Private Capital (BVCA) highlights need for more enabling investment ecosystem. Adds to wider debate on UK capital formation and competitiveness.
• EU reviews shareholder rights frameworks. Consultation on cross‑border voting within the EU contributes to wider competitiveness comparisons between market regimes.

GOVERNANCE & ENGAGEMENT

• Ministers warn boards on AI‑enabled cyber risk. Open letter reinforces expectations around cyber resilience and board oversight.
• UN SSE guidance highlights board‑level ISSB readiness. Focuses on understanding, oversight and disclosure credibility.
• Gender equality action plan guidance published. Governance and narrative expectations strengthened alongside gender pay gap reporting.
• Parker Review reports continued progress on ethnic diversity. Emphasises sustained focus on leadership pipelines and representation.
• ESG ratings regulation and supervision continue to develop. FCA launches pilot on ESG ratings reporting practices, and the EU proposes endorsement and supervision rules for non‑EU ESG ratings providers.

REPORTING & SUSTAINABILITY

• US SEC proposes optional semi‑annual reporting. Reopens debate on reporting burden and short‑termism.
• EU consults on revised ESRS standards. Possible recalibration of CSRD reporting with greater focus on operability and proportionality.
• EU consults on voluntary sustainability reporting standard (VSME). Relevant for companies outside CSRD scope and value‑chain reporting.
• ISSB consults on further SASB enhancements. Investor‑focused, industry‑based disclosure developments continue.
• ISSB advances nature‑related disclosure guidance. Nature and biodiversity risks to be included in an IFRS Practice Statement to complement IFRS S1 and S2 (and UK SRS S1 and S2).

Key takeaways for IR teams

• Competitiveness‑driven capital markets reform remains a central policy theme, spanning retail participation, market structure, liquidity and targeted changes to the listing and transaction environment.
• Usability and proportionality of corporate reporting continue to gain prominence, particularly across sustainability and wider reporting frameworks, as policymakers respond to concerns about complexity and reporting burden.
• Cyber resilience, governance oversight and the credibility of disclosures continue to rise on investor agendas, reinforcing expectations of clear board‑level ownership and effective controls.
• ESG ratings and sustainability assessments are increasingly shaped by governance and engagement expectations, with regulatory initiatives in the UK and EU focusing on transparency, issuer access, challenge mechanisms and interoperability.
• Building a longer‑term investment culture, including greater retail participation, remains a policy priority, shaping UK capital markets reform and influencing expectations around communication, risk framing and engagement.

DETAILED ITEMS / LINKS

CAPITAL MARKETS & PRIVATE CAPITAL

UK retail investment campaign launched
The 'Take The Next Step. Invest' campaign was formally launched at the London Stock Exchange as an industry‑led initiative backed by HM Treasury and the FCA. The campaign seeks to improve public understanding of investing, challenge misconceptions around risk, and encourage greater long‑term retail participation in capital markets.
For IR teams, the campaign forms part of a wider policy shift towards rebuilding a domestic retail investor base and improving engagement with individual shareholders. Over time, this may influence expectations around retail disclosure clarity, engagement channels and the accessibility of issuer communications.
Take The Next Step. Invest

Risk Warnings Review – Supporting a New Retail Investment Culture
The final report of the Risk Warnings Review calls for a move away from blunt, generic risk warnings towards more proportionate, contextual explanations of risk and reward. Commissioned under the Leeds Reforms, the Review highlights evidence that overly prominent or poorly framed warnings can deter appropriate participation in listed markets rather than support informed decision‑making.
For issuers, the Review underlines growing policy support for clearer communication with retail investors, with potential implications for how risk language is handled across marketing materials, prospectuses and investor communications.
Risk Warnings Review Report

FCA finalises UK short selling reforms
The FCA has published finalised changes to the UK short selling regime through Policy Statement PS26/5. The reforms replace public disclosure of individual net short positions with aggregated disclosures by issuer, while maintaining private reporting to the regulator above relevant thresholds.
The FCA argues that this approach improves transparency while reducing market distortion and supporting international competitiveness. For IR teams, the reforms are relevant to how short selling data is interpreted by the market, how issuer volatility is discussed with investors, and how market dynamics may be explained during periods of increased trading activity.
FCA Press release
Policy Statement PS26/5

FCA consults on IPO research rules
The FCA has consulted on proposed changes to its rules governing the provision of research and information in IPOs. The proposals aim to reduce frictions in the listing process, address concerns over access to research, and support the UK’s attractiveness as a venue for capital raising.
This consultation is relevant not only for prospective issuers but also for IR teams involved in pre‑IPO communications, equity story development and early investor engagement, particularly where research availability and sequencing can affect demand and price discovery.
Consultation CP26/14

Longer market soundings can dent liquidity
The FCA published a multi‑firm review of market soundings in UK equity capital markets. While concluding that the overall regime functions as intended, the review found that trading volumes typically decline during market sounding periods and that longer or broader sounding processes increase the risk of liquidity impact and information leakage.
Although focused primarily on intermediary practices, the findings are relevant for issuers planning transactions, particularly in relation to the timing, scope and duration of pre‑deal investor engagement and the balance between market preparation and trading disruption.
FCA review 

UK Private Capital (BVCA) calls for a more enabling investment ecosystem
UK Private Capital’s Annual Review 2025–26 highlights structural challenges facing the UK investment environment and calls for a more enabling policy ecosystem to support growth, scale‑up and capital formation. While focused on private capital, the analysis feeds into broader debates around liquidity, pension investment, and the connection between private and public markets.
For listed issuers, the report adds context to policy discussions on competitiveness, the capital markets pipeline and the UK’s ability to support companies throughout their growth cycle.
UK Private Capital Report

EU reviews shareholder rights frameworks
The European Commission has consulted on the evaluation and possible revision of the Shareholder Rights Directive, focusing on barriers to cross‑border voting, shareholder identification and information flows within EU capital markets. The review forms part of the EU’s Savings and Investments Union agenda and is aimed at reducing fragmentation across Member States.
While not directly applicable to UK‑only listed companies, the consultation highlights ongoing international debate over the complexity and effectiveness of shareholder‑rights frameworks. Commentary during the month has linked this debate to wider questions about governance accountability and the relative attractiveness of different listing regimes.
Consultation (closed 6 May 2026)
Market Commentary

GOVERNANCE & ENGAGEMENT

Ministers warn boards on AI‑enabled cyber risk
In an open letter to business leaders, ministers warned that advances in AI are accelerating cyber threats and urged boards to treat cyber resilience as a core governance issue. The letter emphasises preparedness, leadership oversight and recovery capability, reinforcing expectations that cyber risk should be overseen at board level rather than delegated solely to technical teams.
This reflects growing investor focus on cyber resilience, operational continuity and governance accountability.
Ministerial Letter

UN SSE guidance highlights board‑level ISSB readiness
New guidance from the UN Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative focuses on what boards should be asking to ensure credible readiness for ISSB‑aligned reporting. Rather than concentrating on technical compliance, the guidance emphasises understanding, alignment, oversight and the credibility of disclosures.
For IR teams, the guidance reinforces the importance of ensuring sustainability disclosures are decision‑useful, internally understood and supported by effective governance.
UN SSE

Gender equality action plans – guidance published
The UK Government has published guidance to support employers in developing gender equality action plans alongside gender pay gap reporting. Although voluntary initially, the plans will become mandatory for large employers from 2027.
The guidance strengthens expectations around governance ownership, narrative explanation and accountability for addressing identified gaps.
Guidance

Parker Review reports continued progress on ethnic diversity
The latest Parker Review update shows continued progress on ethnic diversity across UK boards and senior management, while reiterating expectations for sustained focus on leadership pipelines and inclusion at senior levels.
Parker Review

ESG ratings regulation developments in the UK and EU
Regulatory attention on ESG ratings continued during the month, with developments in both the UK and EU. In the UK, the FCA initiated a pilot exercise focused on ESG ratings reporting practices as part of its wider work on transparency and oversight in the ESG ratings market. The pilot is intended to inform future regulatory approaches and improve understanding of current market practices.
In parallel, ESMA consulted on draft guidelines relating to the endorsement and supervision of non‑EU ESG ratings providers under the EU ESG Ratings Regulation. The proposals will be relevant for UK‑based ratings providers and issuers with EU investor bases, as they will shape how the EU framework interacts with the forthcoming UK regime.
For IR teams, the developments underline the importance of understanding how ESG ratings are produced and used by investors, as well as maintaining robust internal processes for engaging with ratings providers and responding to potential inaccuracies.
UK – FCA ESG ratings pilot (call to participate)
EU – ESMA consultation on ESG ratings endorsement (PDF)
 

REPORTING & SUSTAINABILITY

SEC proposes optional semi‑annual reporting
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed amendments that would allow public companies to file semi‑annual rather than quarterly reports. The proposals aim to give companies greater flexibility while retaining obligations to disclose material information.
For IR teams, the proposals have revived debate around reporting burden, short‑termism and the optimal cadence of market communication.
SEC press release

EU consults on revised ESRS standards
The European Commission consulted on revised European Sustainability Reporting Standards, testing whether elements of ESRS should be simplified, clarified, reinforced or deferred in response to concerns around complexity, proportionality and usability.
The outcome will shape the practical CSRD reporting burden for EU‑linked groups.
ESRS consultation

EU consults on voluntary sustainability reporting standard (VSME)
The Commission also consulted on a voluntary sustainability reporting standard for companies outside CSRD scope. The proposals include a “value chain cap” limiting the extent to which larger companies can request sustainability data from smaller suppliers.
VSME consultation

ISSB consults on further SASB enhancements
The ISSB consulted on proposed enhancements to the remaining prioritised SASB Standards, supporting investor‑focused, industry‑based disclosures aligned with IFRS S1.
SASB Consultation

ISSB advances nature‑related disclosure guidance
The ISSB has agreed to develop an IFRS Practice Statement on nature related disclosures, complementing IFRS S1 and S2, rather than creating a standalone standard. This guidance will help companies understand how to report nature related risks and opportunities, reflecting growing investor interest in how companies identify, manage and disclose financially material risks linked to nature and biodiversity. A consultation is expected by October 2026 alongside an exposure draft.
ISSB press release