The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is set to stop publicly revealing the identities of investors holding short positions, moving to aggregated and anonymised reporting instead, according to a report by the Financial Times.
The shift breaks with EU rules but aligns the UK more closely with US practice, where only total short positions are disclosed.
Under the planned reforms, the private reporting threshold for short positions will also rise from 0.1% to 0.2% of a company’s share capital. The FCA frames the changes as easing regulatory burdens to boost UK competitiveness, a move likely welcomed by hedge funds.
Critics warn reduced transparency could make it easier to manipulate markets and increase systemic risk, while proponents argue it will attract investment and strengthen the UK’s financial centre.
