
The FCA sets the stage for a groundbreaking private-public crossover market with PISCES, embracing a “private-plus” approach.
By Mark Austin, James Inness, Rob Moulton, Anna Ngo, Koushik K. Prasad, Frederick Gardner, and Johannes Poon
On 10 June 2025, the FCA unveiled its final proposals for the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System (PISCES), following a comprehensive consultation process. The proposals mark a significant step in the development of a regulated platform for trading private company shares, designed to operate within a sandbox environment for five years. The proposals aim to foster innovation and competition amongst a variety of PISCES models, while ensuring appropriate investor protections based on a “private-plus” approach.
The FCA published the proposals in Policy Statement P25/6. This policy statement follows the UK government’s statutory instrument, which was published on 15 May 2025 and sets out the legislative framework establishing the regulatory sandbox environment for the operation of PISCES for a five-year period.