FCA Approves Vestd as a PISCES Operator

WHY THIS MATTERS: The green light for Vestd to operate its own Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System (PISCES) is a definitive shift toward democratized private market liquidity. This isn’t merely an incremental regulatory update; it signals the maturing of UK equity management infrastructure, aligning it with the long-term trend of unbundling financial services. By becoming the first non-intermediated operator, Vestd is proving that a direct-to-investor model is viable within a regulated capital markets framework. For founders, employees, and early backers, this means a viable, more affordable route to generate liquidity without forcing a premature public offering or complex bank-led processes. This development establishes PISCES as a serious, low-friction mechanism to support the UK’s high-growth scale-up ecosystem.

Sharetech platform Vestd has been granted approval by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to operate the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System (PISCES). 

Vestd, which has a long track record of simplifying equity management for businesses and investors alike, will join the London Stock Exchange (LSE), JP Jenkins and others as approved PISCES operators. 

As the first platform to operate without the need for financial intermediaries, Vestd’s PISCES venue will not charge fees to buyers and will allow investors to work directly with the operator to reduce fees and simplify the process.

The PISCES framework was established by the FCA in June 2025 and allows private companies to trade shares on an intermittent basis. 

After QPLAY became the first issuer to see its shares traded using the new trading framework in March 2026, Vestd’s entry as a newly approved operator signals the ongoing maturity of the new market. 

Yaroslav Kinebas, market infrastructure lead at Vestd, said: “Being granted a PISCES Approval Notice by the FCA is an incredibly proud moment for myself and the rest of the Vestd team. PISCES is a potential game-changer for UK investors, businesses, and employees.

“The Vestd PISCES venue opens up a new class of investment opportunities in UK businesses which were previously difficult to access and offers new liquidity options for founders, early-stage investors and employees. 

“Vestd has a trusted track record in equity management and our PISCES platform means a business can manage its entire equity lifecycle – from company incorporation and employee schemes to cap table management and, eventually, regulated liquidity events – all on a single platform.

“For investors, our end-to-end solution now covers Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) and portfolio management, through to investing in a diverse range of businesses through PISCES events.

“Investors can now register their interest in PISCES events, and we’re already helping companies to prepare their cap tables and employee share schemes ahead of potential events as we prepare to publish our full rules for the Vestd venue.”

FF NEWS TAKE: Vestd’s non-intermediated approach is a pivotal move that substantially lowers the barriers to private share trading, genuinely moving the needle for the UK’s private capital markets. It introduces true competition to incumbent operators like the LSE. The immediate metric to watch is the volume and profile of UK scale-ups that choose this direct equity management model over traditional broker-dealer routes in the next 12 months.