On 29 January 2025, the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (UK FCA) imposed a fine of £99,200 on Infinox Capital Limited for allegedly failing to submit 46,053 transaction reports under the European Union Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (MiFIR). This is the first enforcement action taken by the UK FCA for an alleged breach of MiFIR’s transaction reporting requirements. The fine follows an investigation into Infinox’s transaction reporting systems, which the UK FCA found to be lacking in controls necessary to ensure compliance.
The Final Notice 2025: Infinox issued by the UK FCA states that between 1 October 2022 and 31 March 2023, Infinox allegedly failed to submit transaction reports for single-stock contracts for difference (CFDs) executed through one of its corporate brokerage accounts. This account represented a large part of Infinox’s business, and the alleged failure to report these transactions meant that market activity in this area was not fully recorded.
The UK FCA found that Infinox did not disclose the reporting failure when it was first identified through a third-party compliance review. The UK FCA later detected discrepancies in transaction data and contacted the firm. Infinox acknowledged the alleged breach and submitted missing reports on 15 December 2023. The UK FCA alleges that the firm’s failure to submit these reports breached Article 26(1) of MiFIR, which requires investment firms executing transactions in financial instruments to report complete and accurate details no later than the close of the following working day.
The MiFIR transaction reporting requirements were introduced to allow regulators to monitor trading activity, detect market abuse, and ensure fair and transparent markets. The UK FCA relies on firms submitting transaction reports to detect any suspicious trading behaviour. MiFIR replaced earlier reporting frameworks under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II), and compliance with these regulations became UK law following Brexit.
The UK FCA states that Infinox provides CFD trading services, which are considered a high-risk financial product due to their speculative nature. In October 2022, Infinox began offering single-stock CFDs. UK FCA alleges that Infinox failed to implement adequate reporting systems for transactions executed through its corporate brokerage account, which meant that 60% of transactions in this business line were not reported.
Between 1 October 2022 and 31 March 2023, Infinox allegedly executed thousands of single-stock CFD trades without submitting the required transaction reports. The UK FCA states that it detected discrepancies in Infinox’s transaction data in May 2023 and requested an explanation from the firm. On 31 May 2023, Infinox initially reported that 6,000 transactions had not been submitted. By 6 July 2023, Infinox revised this figure to 46,053.
The firm engaged with the UK FCA over the following months and completed the back-reporting of missing transactions on 15 December 2023. The UK FCA alleges that Infinox had been aware of the reporting failures since March 2023 but did not inform the regulator. The UK FCA considers this failure to proactively disclose the issue as a matter of concern, as transaction reports are a core element of market monitoring.
The UK FCA imposed a fine of £99,200 on Infinox under Section 206 of the UK Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. The original penalty was £141,800, but a 30% reduction was applied after Infinox agreed to an early resolution of the case.
The UK FCA stated that while Infinox did not gain financially from the alleged breach, its failure to report transactions for a product that carries risks of market abuse had regulatory implications. The UK FCA also noted weaknesses in Infinox’s internal controls, with a lack of oversight in its reporting processes.
Infinox must pay the fine by 9 February 2025. If the firm does not comply, the UK FCA may take further enforcement action. The UK FCA has also stated that it will continue to monitor firms’ transaction reporting and take enforcement action where necessary to maintain market oversight.
(Source: https://www.fca.org.uk/news, https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/fca-issues-first-fine-transaction-reporting-failures-under-mifir, https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/final-notices/infinox-2025.pdf)
