Laura Dawes is Director of Authorisations at the FCA. She is responsible for Authorisation applications across a range of sectors, as well as the cancellation and changes in control for regulated firms. Laura is also responsible for the FCA’s early and high growth oversight function which is the bridge between authorisation and wider supervision. This function provides enhanced supervision for firms as they get used to their regulatory status and supports them to understand their obligations so they can meet required standards as they grow. It also ensures that the FCA can identify and address harm developing in newly authorised firms quicker. The FCA’s contact centre which is the first point of contact for consumers and most regulated firms is also within Laura’s remit.
Laura started her career as a Barrister in chambers before joining the FCA’s enforcement and market oversight division in 2011. In enforcement she led teams working on some of the FCA’s most complex and high-profile investigations, including the investigation into the failed firm Premier FX, before becoming Interim Director of Strategy, Policy, International and Intelligence where she jointly led the FCA’s response to the Gloster and Parker Independent Reviews. Laura moved to Authorisations as a Director in April 2022.