ACA Launches Comprehensive Market Abuse Risk Framework for Buy-Side Firms

Delivering a new regulator-ready framework, built by practitioners and designed for real-world risk.

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ACA Group (ACA), the leading governance, risk, and compliance advisor in financial services, today announced the launch of its Market Abuse Risk Framework, a holistic new solution designed to help UK and European regulated buy-side firms identify, manage, and monitor market abuse risks across their trading activities.

ACA is the first firm to launch a comprehensive Market Abuse Risk Framework for buy-side firms that offers the full range of solutions to address their challenges. Through a combination of advisory services, outsourced managed support, and regulatory technology, ACA enables firms to respond to findings and strengthen surveillance across the pre-trade through post-trade lifecycle.

With increasing scrutiny from regulators and investors, firms are under pressure to demonstrate robust controls and conduct frameworks aligned with the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR), the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II), and the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SM&CR). This pressure has intensified following the FCA’s newly announced five-year enforcement strategy prioritising market abuse, recent insider trading enforcement cases, and the July 2025 consultation on SM&CR reforms aimed at streamlining the regime, while maintaining high standards of accountability.

ACA’s new Market Abuse Risk Framework solution delivers a structured, regulator-ready framework that integrates surveillance, conduct, and control reviews. Built by practitioners with deep experience across the buy-side, it reflects real-world insight into market abuse risks and how to manage them effectively across asset classes and trading strategies.

“What truly differentiates this solution is the depth of expertise driving it,” said Raj Somal, ACA Group Partner. “Our clients are navigating increasingly-complex trading, and jurisdictional and infrastructure environments, and often without a clear, actionable view of their market abuse risk. This isn’t just a health check; it’s a dynamic, evolving programme that firms can use to strengthen governance, meet evolving regulatory and business expectations, and build investor confidence.”

The framework includes:

• A proprietary matrix mapping market abuse offences against trading activity across all asset classes.
• Reviews of surveillance systems, policies and procedures, Suspicious Transaction and Order Reports procedures, information barriers, and related policies.
• Coverage of public and private assets, real assets, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), custom baskets, and algorithmic and quantitative strategies.
• Evaluation and review of surveillance technology to ensure alignment with a firm's market abuse risk profile and internal policies and procedures.
• A question bank informed by ACA’s deep industry experience and updated through ongoing client engagements.
• Delivery of a reusable risk framework document with guidance on maintenance and updates.

ACA’s Market Abuse Risk Framework is part of a broader suite of solutions designed to help firms not only identify market abuse risks but also take action to address them. Through the ComplianceAlpha^® regulatory technology platform, ACA provides integrated surveillance and monitoring capabilities that span the entire trade lifecycle, including trade and eComms surveillance, conflicts of interest, as well as expert networks and research meetings. These tools can be combined with outsourced managed services and practitioner-led advisory support, enabling firms to remediate findings, enhance governance frameworks, and maintain ongoing compliance with evolving regulatory expectations.

ACA’s end-to-end approach equips firms with practical, scalable solutions tailored to their unique risk profiles. The firm is hosting a live event on 23 October 2025 at 2:00 p.m. BST to explore the intensifying regulatory scrutiny around market abuse, surveillance, and senior manager accountability.

About ACA Group

ACA Group (ACA) is the leading governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) advisor in financial services. For over 20 years, we’ve empowered our clients to launch, grow, and protect their business. Our global team of 1,400 employees includes former regulators and practitioners with a deep understanding of the regulatory landscape. Our innovative approach integrates advisory, managed services, distribution solutions, and analytics with our ComplianceAlpha^® technology platform. For more information, visit www.acaglobal.com.