The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has fined Metro Bank more than £10m for breaching the listing rules by publishing incorrect information to investors.

Metro Bank’s former chief executive Craig Donaldson and former chief financial officer David Arden have also been fined £223,100 and £134,600 respectively, for being “knowingly concerned” in the bank’s breach.

The FCA says Metro Bank has not referred the financial watchdog’s decision to the upper tribunal.

The two individuals have referred their respective decision notices to the upper tribunal where they will each present their case.

The upper tribunal will determine whether to uphold the FCA’s decisions against Donaldson and Arden and whether there are any other actions should be taken by the FCA.

As part of its quarterly financial results, Metro Bank regularly reported to the market on its prudential position, including the risk weighted assets (RWA) on which its regulatory capital requirements are based.

The bank published incorrect information concerning its RWA figure in the Q3 trading update on 24 October 2018.

Metro Bank was aware at the time that this figure was wrong and failed to qualify it or explain in the October announcement that it was subject to an ongoing review and would require a substantial correction.

The FCA says the bank also failed to consider, and to seek legal advice on, whether the incorrect RWA figure ought to be qualified or explained in the announcement.

As a result, the FCA believes Metro Bank failed to take reasonable care to ensure that the October Announcement was not false and misleading and did not omit relevant information.

The FCA considers that Donaldson and Arden were knowingly concerned in Metro Bank’s breach of the listing rules.

When the correct RWA figure was announced in January 2019, it contributed to a 39% fall in Metro Bank’s share price.

Enforcement and market oversight executive director Mark Steward states: “Listed firms must ensure that the information they are disclosing to the market is right. This is what investors are entitled to receive.”

“The UK’s Listing Rules impose high standards on issuers and their officers which Metro Bank, Mr Donaldson and Mr Arden failed to meet in this case.”