Research by BDO Stoy Hayward reveals fines handed out by the FSA in the first 10 months of the year totalled £20.5m - up almost four-fold on £5.3m in the same period last year.

In October alone, the FSA enforced fines totalled £7.2m, much higher than a whole year of fines for 2007, the Financial Times reports.

Fiona Raistrick, BDO Stoy Hayward head of the financial services regulatory practice, said the penalties isssued by FSA continued to increase as the regulator took a tougher stance on enforcement to achieve a credible deterrence from bad practice.

'The UK is one of the most highly regulated countries in the world and the level of regulation we face only looks set to increase. Therefore, it is imperative that companies focus on making sure their internal controls are sufficient to mitigate their risks,' she said.

Further reading:

FSA threatens executives with fines

Internal controls: control yourself

Read the Financial Times story