UK MAR: Market Abuse Obligations, Surveillance and Senior Accountability

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Course Overview

Market abuse remains a core area of regulatory focus for UK-regulated financial services firms, with clear and well-established obligations under the UK Market Abuse Regulation (UK MAR). Firms are expected to maintain effective governance, robust surveillance arrangements, and clear senior accountability to prevent, detect, and report market abuse across trading activity, advisory services, and information flows.

This interactive, workshop-led course is designed for senior compliance and conduct risk professionals who require a practical, working understanding of UK MAR obligations and how they apply in day-to-day firm operations.

The course examines the scope of UK MAR and the principal forms of market abuse, including insider dealing, unlawful disclosure of inside information, and market manipulation. It focuses on how firms should design, operate, and evidence proportionate, risk-based systems and controls in line with regulatory expectations, covering market abuse risk assessment, surveillance and monitoring, escalation, and Suspicious Transaction and Order Reporting (STOR).

Strong emphasis is placed on evidencing effective oversight, applying professional judgement, and meeting obligations from both a civil and criminal perspective. Participants will be equipped to critically assess whether their firm’s UK MAR framework is effective and to clearly demonstrate compliance to regulators, auditors, and senior management.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

• Understand the scope, purpose, and application of UK MAR and its key obligations
• Identify and assess market abuse risks, including insider dealing, unlawful disclosure, and market manipulation
• Apply a risk-based approach to UK MAR governance, policies, and procedures
• Assess the effectiveness of market surveillance systems, alerts, and investigation processes
• Make and evidence defensible decisions around escalation and STOR submissions
• Understand expectations around inside information controls, information barriers, and disclosure
• Demonstrate effective senior oversight, accountability, and professional judgement under UK MAR

Who this course is for

This workshop is designed for professionals with responsibility for UK MAR and conduct risk oversight, including:

• Heads of Compliance and Financial Crime
• Market Abuse and Surveillance specialists
• Senior Compliance and Conduct Risk Managers
• Capital Markets, Trading, and Advisory Compliance professionals
• Corporate Finance and Inside Information oversight leads
• Internal audit and assurance professionals
• Senior managers accountable for market abuse 

The course is particularly relevant for UK-regulated firms subject to UK MAR that wish to strengthen surveillance effectiveness, improve decision-making around escalation and STORs, and demonstrate robust, regulator-ready compliance.