Isle of Man Financial Services Authority
11 FOI requests | Full disclosure rate: 100.0%
The Freedom of Information requests reveal an Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (FSA) that is selectively transparent: willing to release aggregate statistical data on breaches and penalties (e.g., cases 366433, 2434901) but deeply resistant to disclosing the internal policies, supervisory strategies, and decision-making frameworks that drive those outcomes. A recurring theme is the use of exemptions to withhold enforcement guidance (369534, 801665) and historical inspection data (1391861), often labeling such requests as 'vexatious' or claiming data is not centrally collated. This pattern suggests a regulatory body that prioritizes operational confidentiality over public accountability regarding its supervisory approach, particularly in the wake of major scandals like the Premier Group liquidation (979981).
Key Cases
Case 979981 — This case represents a critical failure of transparency regarding public funds, as the FSA refused to disclose any information on taxpayer-funded liquidation costs for companies linked to the Premier Group, a major financial scandal, despite the high public interest in how public money is spent on private failures.
Case 1391861 — The refusal of this request as 'vexatious' is significant because it highlights the FSA's use of administrative hurdles to avoid releasing historical supervisory data (red/amber/blue action points), effectively blocking an analysis of long-term regulatory effectiveness.
Case 366433 — This is a key disclosure case where the FSA provided a comprehensive table of AML/CFT breaches from 2011-2017, offering rare insight into the scale of regulatory non-compliance and the distinction between civil penalties under the Code versus the Financial Services Act.
Case 522934 — This case touches on high-level corporate governance and potential conflicts of interest, specifically questioning whether the FSA Chair or former Chair held beneficial ownership in a specific holding company, with the specific data withheld under absolute exemption.
Case 4339704 — The disclosure of total monetary settlement amounts for staff disputes, while withholding specific reasons and counts, reveals the financial cost of internal employment conflicts, a metric often hidden in public sector organizations.
Related FOI Stories
Enforcement Opacity and Policy Withholding — #369534, #361135, #801665, #1391861
Financial Accountability and Liquidation Costs — #979981, #1900373, #2177473, #4674149
Staff Remuneration and Governance Transparency — #2320789, #4045073, #4339704, #4450241, #2057361
AML/CFT and Regulatory Statistics — #366433, #2434901, #4970414
| Date | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-12-05 | Location of actuarial work for new PCC/LP insurer | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the location of actuarial work for a new Protected Cell Company or Limited Partnership awaiting insurer authorisation. The Authority responded that no such entities are currently awaiting authorisation, as the one from 2022 has since been approved, and detailed their internal actuarial staffing. | ||
| 2024-02-23 | Licenceholder Statistical Information for the years 2000 to 2022 | All information sent |
| 2022-12-22 | UK FCA Insurance Intermediaries registered with the FSA | All information sent |
| 2022-11-14 | Internet cameras | All information sent |
| 2022-09-09 | Unpublished Responses to FOIA Requests | All information sent |
| 2022-05-10 | Designated Business civil penalties charged | All information sent |
| The request sought details on civil penalties charged under the Designated Business Act, including amounts, dates, and breached sections. The authority disclosed a breakdown of penalties imposed from 2019 to 2022, noting that most were £5,000 fines for unregistered business activity, with some mitigated or waived due to exceptional circumstances. | ||
| 2022-03-09 | Job titles | All information sent |
| The request sought a list of job titles and salary maxima for all staff at the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority. The authority provided the salary bands for most roles but withheld specific maxima for unique positions and the Chief Executive to prevent individual identification. | ||
| 2021-09-08 | Suspension of Class 8 license | All information sent |
| A request was made to the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority to confirm the effective date of the temporary suspension of CDAX Ltd's Class 8 license. The authority disclosed that the suspension became effective on 13 May 2021. | ||
| 2021-05-04 | Printing paper cost. | All information sent |
| The requester asked for the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority's annual spending on printing paper and ink to support a paper-reduction initiative. The authority disclosed the specific costs for paper and internal printing for the financial years 2018/19, 2019/20, and 2020/21, noting that ink costs are volume-based and included in the printing figures. | ||
| 2019-03-04 | OCCUPATIONAL PENSION DEFINED BENEFIT SCHEMES | All information sent |
| The request sought the number of Isle of Man registered Occupational Defined Benefit Pension Schemes with over 50 members and their respective membership counts. The Authority disclosed that there are 20 such Authorised schemes, provided specific membership figures for 19 Domestic schemes, and noted that data for 39 Recognised UK schemes was not held. | ||
| 2018-03-09 | Breaches of AML/CFT Code | All information sent |
| The request sought annual statistics on AML/CFT Code breaches, investigations, prosecutions, and regulatory actions from 2011 to 2017. The Authority disclosed the data in a table, noting that civil penalties are not imposed under the Code itself but referenced a separate penalty under the Financial Services Act 2008. | ||