FSA fines to double

City regulator the Financial Services Authority announced a sharp increase in penalties to come in from February 2010. Under the new rules individuals will face a minimum fine of £100,000 while companies will be hit with penalties worth up to £50 million. An insider said that the FSA had to increase its fines because ‘insufficient account’ had been taken in some cases of previous enforcement action, often as the companies stood to earn much more in profit flouting the rules than they stood to lose from a fine.