Have you ever looked at your savings account balance and felt a tiny pang of guilt?
You know the one – that quiet voice whispering that £30,000 (or £50,000, or £100,000) sitting in a 1% instant-access account probably isn’t doing you any favours in the long run. Most of us push the thought away. Investing feels complicated, risky, something “other people” do. Well, from April 2026 the financial regulator is stepping in to make ignoring that voice a little bit harder.
The FCA Is About to Change How We Talk About Money
The Financial Conduct Authority is rolling out something called Targeted Support – a framework that lets banks, investment platforms and pension providers give customers straightforward, regulated suggestions without crossing the line into full-blown financial advice.
Think of it as the financial equivalent of your gym buddy saying “casually” mentioning you might want to add some weights to your routine. It’s not a personal trainer writing you a bespoke programme, but it’s a lot more useful than being left to wander the gym floor on your own.
Why Now? The Numbers Are Eye-Opening
Recent data shows around seven million adults in the UK have £10,000 or more sitting in cash savings and have never seriously thought about investing it. That’s a staggering amount of money quietly losing value to inflation year after year.
Add to that the fact that only 8.6% of us sought proper financial advice last year, and you start to see the scale of the problem. Most people are making big decisions about pensions or long-term savings are essentially guessing – or doing nothing at all.
I’ve been there myself. A few years ago I had a five-figure sum languishing in a current account earning precisely zero interest. It took a random conversation with a colleague to nudge me into doing something about it. Imagine if my bank had been allowed to send me a simple message saying “Hey, you could be earning 4-5% here instead”.
So How Will Targeted Support Actually Work?
From spring 2026, firms that opt in will be able to contact customers either reactively or proactively with suggestions tailored to broad groups rather than fully personalised advice.
- You call your pension provider to ask how much is in your pot → they notice you’re withdrawing at an unsustainable rate and flag it.
- You have £40,000 in a savings account earning 1.5% → your bank suggests a simple stocks-and-shares ISA that has historically returned far more (with the risks clearly explained).
- Your investment portfolio is 100% in cash funds inside a stocks-and-shares ISA → your platform points out some low-cost global tracker options.
Crucially, everything has to stay within strict boundaries set by the FCA’s Consumer Duty rules. Firms must prove the suggestion is fair and in the customer’s best interest. No hard selling, no hidden commissions, no pushing expensive in-house products unless they genuinely stack up.
“These once-in-a-generation reforms will help people navigate their financial lives and give them greater confidence to invest. This is a win-win for consumers and firms alike.”
– Sarah Pritchard, FCA executive director
The Bigger Picture: Trying to Fix Britain’s Cash Hoarding Habit
The government and regulator aren’t exactly hiding their agenda. They want more money flowing from savings accounts into the real economy – buying shares in British companies, funding infrastructure, basically doing the things that help growth.
Whether you think that’s noble or slightly cynical probably depends on your politics, but the maths is hard to argue with. Cash savings have outperformed shares in only a handful of periods over the last century, and we’re currently living through one of the longest “cash is king” stretches in decades. That can’t last forever.
In my view, the most interesting angle is psychological. We Brits are famously cautious with money. We like the feeling of “having it in the bank”. Targeted Support isn’t trying to bully anyone into stock market gambling – it’s trying to lower the emotional barrier just enough for ordinary people to take the first small step.
What’s In It for You – the Actual Benefits
Let’s be concrete. Over the next decade the FCA estimates suggest at least 18 million people could receive some form of extra help with their savings, investments or pensions.
- Better retirement outcomes – spotting unsustainable drawdown rates early could add tens of thousands to some people’s pots.
- Higher returns on cash piles – moving even a portion to a balanced investment can make a dramatic difference over 10-20 years.
- Simpler decisions – you still make the final call, but with clearer options presented in plain English rather than 40-page Key Investor documents.
- Regulated protection – firms can’t just spam you with rubbish; every suggestion has to meet strict fairness tests.
Perhaps the most underrated benefit is timing. Many of us only think about our finances when we’re forced to – changing jobs, approaching retirement, receiving an inheritance. Having a regulated nudge at exactly those moments could be transformative.
The Flip Side – Reasons to Stay Cautious
Nobody’s pretending this is perfect. Some consumer groups worry it’s still a foot in the door for mis-selling. Others point out that “targeted” suggestions are based on broad segments, not your full circumstances.
There’s also the very real possibility that some firms will use it as a glorified marketing channel. The proof will be in how rigorously the FCA polices the scheme once it’s live.
My take? The protections look genuinely robust on paper, and the Consumer Duty has teeth these days. But as always, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. The best defence is still basic financial literacy – understanding the difference between cash, bonds and shares, knowing your own risk tolerance, reading the small print.
What Should You Do Before April 2026?
Honestly? Use the next few months as a dry run.
- Log into every dormant savings account and pension pot you own.
- Ask yourself: “If my bank phoned tomorrow and said I could move this money somewhere it might grow 4-6% a year after inflation, with moderate risk, would I be interested?”
- Start reading one trustworthy investing blog or book (even 15 minutes a week adds up).
- Check you actually know what charges you’re paying – many people are shocked to discover their workplace pension is costing 1.5% a year when 0.5% versions exist.
The more comfortable you are with the basics, the easier it will be to separate helpful nudges from sales patter when the messages start arriving.
Final Thought – A Quiet Revolution?
Targeted Support probably won’t make the front pages. It doesn’t have the drama of a budget giveaway or a market crash. But over the next decade it has the potential to put hundreds of billions of pounds to work more productively – and, more importantly, to give millions of ordinary savers a fairer shot at a comfortable retirement.
Whether you’re sitting on cash you’re too nervous to invest, or you’ve been meaning to review your pension for the last five years but never quite got round to it, 2026 might just be the year the system finally meets you halfway.
And frankly, we could all do with a helpful nudge now and then.
