Information on Matthew and Nikolas West prosecution - June 2025

On 9 May the FCA announced Matthew and Nikolas West pleaded guilty to insider dealing, following a prosecution brought by the FCA.

1. When did the FCA first started to investigate Matthew and Nikolas West?

2. How long did the investigation last?

3. How much did the investigation cost?

4. How much did the FCA spend on external counsel and barristers?

1. We can confirm that we opened our investigation in 2018.
2. We can confirm that the duration of our investigation was 6 years and 5 months.
3. The total costs incurred amount to approximately £310,000. Please note that this figure does not include any costs incurred since March 2025. Additionally, please note that the above figure includes only ‘external costs’ and does not include any internal FCA staff time. We are unable to provide a breakdown of internal FCA staff time/costs because this is not information which we track.
4. The FCA spent £167,000 of the total costs on external counsel and barristers.