ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the evolution and development of the financial services sector across the past 30 years. The Financial Services Act 1986 was introduced to ensure that those involved in providing financial services and advice on financial services were fit to do so. The financial crisis and the impact on banking in particular, had a substantial and significant impact on the reputation of financial services sector as a whole and of the many organizations that it comprises. The powers of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) were underpinned through the introduction of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and, even more recently, the FSAs Retail Distribution Review was launched in order to protect further the position of the consumer. As the financial crisis progressed towards 2012, increasing concerns were expressed about the banking sector and it could be argued that public attention towards banking in the UK has increased due to the level of funding.
