Financial watchdog FCA, moving against a rising tide of pension fraud, warned financial firms they could be fined for improper use of unauthorised introducer firms which provide client leads.

Wealth managers and IFAs have traditionally used business leads from unregulated "introducers" or people such as retired financial advisers who are no longer authorised to provide advice.

The FCA said: "We are very concerned at the increase we have seen in cases in which the introducer has an inappropriate influence on how the authorised firm carries out its business, in particular where the introducer influences the fi...