UK financial regulator The FCA has published The Mills Review – what it terms a landmark review into the impact of AI on retail financial services. The review sets out how AI could reshape retail financial services for consumers, firms, markets and regulators by 2030 and beyond.

Led by FCA executive director Sheldon Mills and commissioned by the Board, The Mills Review is (according to the FCA) the first work of its kind initiated by a regulator globally.

AI-driven shifts in financial services

Drawing on views from across the financial services landscape, the report identifies four major AI‑driven shifts likely to impact retail financial services:

1. the transformation of firm operations;
2. the evolution of consumer journeys;
3. the reshaping of competition and market power; and
4. the amplification of fraud and cyber risks.

The report finds there is already consumer appetite for the use of agentic AI in personal finance, with research commissioned by the FCA showing that a fifth of people – equivalent to 11 million UK adults – are likely to use AI that can act autonomously within pre-set goals. But consumers in the survey are concerned about trust and control of AI.

The Review concludes that AI is likely to become a defining force in retail financial services, transforming how firms operate, how consumers make financial decisions and how markets function. While AI has the potential to improve access, personalisation and efficiency, it could also amplify risks associated with fraud, cyber security, consumer harm and market concentration.

Purpose of the review

In the future, firms and consumers are likely to delegate more financial decision-making to AI systems. AI will not only be a technology to assist people, but will recommend actions, initiate transactions, and execute decisions within agreed parameters.

The FCA Board asked executive director Sheldon Mills to lead a review into how these advances in AI could transform retail financial services.

The review builds on the FCA’s existing work on AI, while recognising that agentic AI has the potential to fundamentally change how financial services operate.

How the review was carried out

The FCA said that the review was based on a blend of analysis, research and engagement. This included feedback gathered from firms, trade bodies, consumer groups, technology providers and international stakeholders as part of an Engagement Paper published in January 2026.

It also draws on commissioned research, involving a survey of more than 5,000 UK financial services consumers, FCA-led focus groups and comparative analysis of international approaches to AI adoption and regulation.

Key findings

• Retail financial services are moving from human-led, towards AI-enabled, continuous and delegated services.
• AI could reshape the sector by 2030 – changing how firms operate, consumers make decisions, markets compete and risks emerge.
• AI could improve outcomes and support growth by reducing friction and tackling long-standing challenges, such as advice gaps, low switching and protection gaps. But it could also amplify risks associated with fraud, cyber security and consumer harm.
• Consumer adoption will depend on trust, control and access – even though 1 in 5 UK adults are already open to AI making decisions for them.

FCA Executive Director Sheldon Mills said,

“Artificial intelligence will transform financial services by 2030. It creates significant opportunities for consumers, firms and the wider economy. This report sets out a roadmap for how industry regulators and government can prepare for the next phase of AI-driven change in our world-leading financial services sector.”

Key recommendations

The Mills Review outlines seven recommendations for the FCA Board and Executive to consider, which are as follows:

1. Secure and adapt the regulatory perimeter.
2. Strengthen system-wide coordination and oversight.
3. Monitor the transition to autonomous models and adapt regulatory frameworks.
4. Scale up the FCA’s AI Lab to support AI models and system innovation in financial services.
5. Enable the foundations for agentic finance.
6. Build and adopt an AI-enabled agentic supervisory model.
7. Develop a trusted public-interest AI-enabled financial capability service.

FCA response

Ashley Alder, Chair of the FCA, said,

“The Board is enormously grateful to Sheldon for the rich, comprehensive report he’s delivered. His work anticipates the fundamental change agentic AI will bring to financial services. It highlights how consumers and firms can reap significant potential benefits as well how risks can be managed.

“As is clear in the report, we need to keep pace with a rapidly changing environment and the principles-based, outcomes focussed approach we’ve taken on AI – relying on the Consumer Duty and Senior Managers Regime – has been critical to us doing so. The recommendations build on work the FCA has been doing – not least allowing firms to test their use of AI with us – and our own use of AI to be a smarter regulator, more efficient and effective.”

The FCA’s The Mills Review can be downloaded here (pdf).