FCA: 'We are a national regulator with a Yorkshire heart'

However, in that time the staff count has risen to 300, and the regulator has had to open another floor of its building in Queen Street.

FCA director and head of Leeds William Hague told The Yorkshire Post that the organisation is “very open to continuing that growth”.

In particular, he said “the range of skills has surpassed our expectations”.

The regulator, which initially set up the Northern Digital Hub which covers fintech, now has a legal team, enforcement professionals and project managers in the Leeds base as well.

“There’s a broad skills base in the region which means knowledge intensive sectors, like ours, are able to get that expertise and talent that they need,” he said, “and I see nothing to see us hitting a ceiling on that at all.

“We’ve been led by the skills and expertise we were able to bring in.”

Mr Hague has said his team have become part of a wider ecosystem and hopes it will attract more businesses to the city.

He said the Leeds City Council and the West Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority are enthusiastic about the FCA collaborating “with the universities and learning establishments, who are looking to connect with us to ensure the skills are there for the future”.

“We recognise we are part of an ecosystem, we are part of an ecosystem of skills but also of communities,” Mr Hague explained.

And despite being a national regulator, the FCA has managed to grow a Yorkshire identity.

The office is covered with symbols of the region, from the Golden Owl of Leeds to the landscapes of the Dales.

Mr Hague said: “We’ve definitely got a Yorkshire identity - we’ve made sure that things in the office demonstrate that.

“We are a national regulator with a Yorkshire heart and we want to be part of the Yorkshire community, we want to be a positive influence here.”

The office’s charity partner is St George's Crypt, the 95-year-old Leeds-based support service for homeless people.

“I would say that you see that identity in the inclusive, warm, Yorkshire culture of the office,” Mr Hague added.

“I think that’s distinct - it’s very much FCA but it’s very much Yorkshire FCA.”