How to check if a company is FCA authorised

The short answer

Search the Financial Services Register at register.fca.org.uk — the FCA's official public record of every authorised firm. You can search by firm name or, better, by Firm Reference Number (FRN), the unique six- or seven-digit ID every authorised firm has. If a firm claims to be FCA authorised, its entry is there. If it isn't, that's your answer.

How to run the check

1. Search by FRN if you have it

Names are ambiguous — similar trading names, group companies, and outright clones abound. An FRN is unique. Any genuine firm will give you its FRN without hesitation; reluctance to share one is itself a signal.

2. Match the exact firm, not a lookalike

Check the registered name and the trading names listed on the entry against the business you're actually dealing with. "Clone firms" lift a real company's name and FRN and pair them with their own phone number and website — so compare the contact details on the register with the ones you've been given. Mismatched details with a matching name is the classic clone pattern, and the FCA maintains a separate warning list for exactly this.

3. Read the entry properly

The status line tells you whether the firm is currently authorised. Below it sit the details that matter: the permissions the firm actually holds, the individuals approved to run it — including the SMF29 senior manager for small credit firms — its trading names, and, for appointed representatives, the principal firm responsible for them.

What the statuses mean

Authorised covers everyone with their own FCA permission — including limited permission firms, which appear as authorised with their (shorter) permissions list. Appointed representative means the firm trades under another firm's authorisation; the entry names the principal, and it's worth checking the principal's entry too. No longer authorised means exactly that. And a firm that doesn't appear at all is either exempt, listed under a different legal name, or simply not authorised — our guides to who needs a licence and unauthorised finance cover what that means.

What to check beyond the tick

Authorisation isn't generic — it's a list of specific permitted activities. A firm authorised for insurance distribution isn't thereby authorised for credit broking, so check the permissions cover the activity you're actually dealing with. Treat vague phrases like "FCA registered" with care too: for consumer credit, the status that matters is authorised, with the right permission on the list.

If you're the one applying

Two things applicants should know. First, nothing shows on the register while your application is pending — which is one reason you can't offer finance while you wait. Second, the day you're approved you get your FRN and your public entry — the moment your firm becomes checkable by everyone else. What follows from there is in what happens after approval, and your advertising will then carry your own details under the financial promotions rules.

Why lenders and platforms will run this check on you

The register isn't just consumer protection — it's commercial infrastructure. Finance providers won't onboard a broker without an FRN; marketplaces, insurers and some trade platforms ask for it too. For a business that offers finance, being on the register is what unlocks the partnerships that make finance worth offering.