AI Live Testing
FCA supervisory programme testing AI in live financial markets with eight firms, April 2026.
Last refreshed: 22 April 2026
Is the FCA moving fast enough to govern AI before it moves markets?
Timeline for AI Live Testing
Mentioned in: FCA and PRA cut SM&CR certification by 15%
UK Startups and InnovationFCA names eight firms in AI Live Testing round two
UK Startups and Innovation- Which firms are in the FCA AI Live Testing second cohort?
- The second FCA AI Live Testing cohort (named 21 April 2026) includes Aereve, Barclays, Coadjute, Experian, GoCardless, Lloyds/Scottish Widows, Palindrome, and UBS. Advai is the independent technical partner.Source: FCA / Lowdown
- How does the FCA AI Live Testing differ from the Regulatory Sandbox?
- AI Live Testing exposes AI systems to real customer and market data under FCA supervision, unlike the traditional Sandbox which uses simulated environments. Live Testing produces real performance data but carries genuine market risk.Source: FCA
- When will the FCA publish AI Live Testing results?
- The second cohort evaluations are scheduled to conclude in Q1 2027, when the FCA is expected to publish its findings.Source: FCA / Lowdown
- How does the UK AI financial regulation compare with the EU AI Act?
- The FCA's AI Live Testing model permits supervised live deployment in financial markets, predating EU AI Act sandbox provisions. The EU favours stricter ex-ante controls under the AI Act and MiCA; the UK's approach is more permissive and output-led.Source: FCA
Background
The FCA's AI Live Testing programme named its second cohort of eight firms on 21 April 2026: Aereve, Coadjute, Barclays, Experian, GoCardless, Lloyds/Scottish Widows, UBS, and Palindrome, with Advai as independent technical partner. Evaluations are due to conclude in Q1 2027. FCA Regulatory Sandbox applications have risen 49% year on year — the highest intake since the FCA Innovation Hub launched in 2016.
AI Live Testing is a supervised environment in which financial services firms can deploy AI systems under FCA oversight, exposing them to real customer and market data under a controlled regulatory wrapper. Unlike the traditional Regulatory Sandbox — which uses simulated environments — Live Testing carries genuine market exposure, giving regulators and firms alike real performance data rather than modelled proxies. The programme sits within the FCA's broader Innovation Pathways suite alongside the Digital Sandbox and Regulatory Nursery.
The second cohort arrives alongside a consistent pattern of lighter-touch FCA calibration in April 2026: the FCA and PRA also cut SM&CR certification requirements by 15% in the same update. On the international stage, the UK's live-testing model predates the EU AI Act's sandbox provisions; the FCA's approach of supervised live deployment sits in deliberate contrast to the EU's stricter ex-ante AI Act pathway and MiCA framework. Sandbox output is expected to feed directly into future FCA AI rulemaking.