Bank of England Streamlines Reporting and Disclosure Requirements for Bank Failure Regime

WHY THIS MATTERS
The Bank of England and PRA’s changes signal a shift toward more proportionate regulation—easing the burden on smaller banks while maintaining strict oversight of systemically important institutions. By raising thresholds and simplifying reporting requirements, regulators are acknowledging that not all firms pose the same level of risk to financial stability.

This is particularly important in the current environment, where regulators are under pressure to support growth and competition without weakening safeguards. Streamlining resolution planning requirements helps smaller and mid-sized banks allocate more resources to lending and innovation, while still ensuring that failure can be managed safely without taxpayer intervention.

The Bank of England and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) have finalised a package of changes to firms’ resolution reporting and disclosure requirements which reduces the burden of regulation while maintaining a robust and credible regime that supports growth and competition.

The UK’s resolution regime is designed to ensure that banks can fail safely, without disruption to critical services such as payments and deposit access, and without relying on public funds. By requiring firms to plan for failure in advance, the regime protects financial stability and supports confidence in the banking system.

The changes will help maintain:

• A proportionate resolution assessment framework: The threshold for firms in scope of Resolution Assessment Framework (RAF) reporting and disclosure requirements will increase from £50bn to £100bn in retail deposits. At the same time, Small Domestic Deposit Takers will be required to review their recovery plans every two years rather than annually. This will be implemented from 1 April 2026.
• Targeted MREL reporting:
  Amendments to Minimum Requirement for Own Funds and Eligible Liabilities (MREL) reporting will simplify and clarify existing expectations. These changes reduce overall reporting burden on firms while ensuring the Bank and PRA continue to receive the information needed to support effective resolution planning. This will be implemented from 1 January 2027.
• Clear and meaningful disclosures:
  Changes to Pillar 3 disclosure will improve how firms explain their resolvability resources, any limits on capital distribution, and how they prepare their disclosures.
  
  The approach is proportionate to firm size and complexity, limiting additional burden while ensuring market participants, customers and other stakeholders have access to decision-useful information. This will be implemented from 1 January 2027.

These changes follow confirmation that the Bank will delete several resolution reporting templates from 1 April 2026.

Dave Ramsden, Deputy Governor for Markets, Banking, Payments and Resolution, said:

“A credible resolution regime needs to be robust, but it also needs to be responsive and proportionate. These changes reflect the reduced risks that smaller and less complex firms pose to UK financial stability, while ensuring that the largest firms remain resolvable. By streamlining regulation we are supporting competition and sustainable growth, without compromising our ability to manage bank failure in an orderly way.”

In July 2025, the PRA published three consultation papers on aspects of the recovery and resolution framework. The policy statements published today incorporate feedback from stakeholders and set out how the final changes will be implemented.

FF NEWS TAKE
Regulation is being refined—not relaxed.

The UK is moving toward a more risk-based approach, easing pressure on smaller banks while keeping the biggest players tightly controlled.

It’s a balancing act: support growth and competition, but never compromise financial stability. If executed well, this could make the UK a more attractive environment for banking innovation without repeating past mistakes.