In 2025 to 2026 the SFO announced five new cases, carried out seven search operations across 24 premises and arrested 14 people (SFO Annual Report and Accounts 2025 to 2026, page 3). It was also the first year of the failure to prevent fraud offense.
What is the Serious Fraud Office (SFO)?
The SFO takes a narrow slice of fraud: its framework agreement with the Attorney General's Office sets its first aim as "To investigate and prosecute the most serious or complex cases of fraud, bribery and corruption" (annual report, page 9). Section 1 of the Criminal Justice Act 1987 sets it up: "A Serious Fraud Office shall be constituted for England and Wales and Northern Ireland."
The SFO was established in 1988 and does not cover Scotland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands (SFO, About us). Before authorizing an investigation, the Director weighs the actual or intended harm to the public, the UK's reputation and its economy, and whether the case needs the SFO's specialist powers.
In UK police, finance, banking, government and company contexts, SFO has the same full form and meaning. The UK's anti money laundering rules and supervisors are a separate system, set out in the whitepaper AML in the United Kingdom.
How does the SFO work?
After Ultra Electronics reported suspected corruption in Algeria, the SFO opened an investigation in 2018 and in 2024 extended it to every country where the company operated. On 1 May 2026 a judge approved a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) for failure to prevent bribery: a 10 million pound penalty plus 4.8 million pounds in costs (SFO, Ultra Electronics DPA).
Case teams of lawyers, investigators and forensic accountants run each investigation with what the annual report calls "unique powers of compulsion" (page 8). The SFO has an active caseload of around 120 and secured over 2.89 million pounds in proceeds of crime in 2025 to 2026 (pages 24 and 25).
Table 1. The SFO case process, stage by stage.
| Stage | What happens | Legal basis or source | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Referral | A whistleblower, company or agency reports | SFO reporting routes (Table 5) | Intelligence Division |
| Pre investigation | Section 2 powers used to decide whether to open a case | CJA 1987 s2A, any case since 15 January 2024 | Director |
| Investigation | Interviews, document notices, search warrants | CJA 1987 s1(3) and s2 | Case team; a constable executes warrants |
| Outcome | Prosecution, or a DPA for an organization | CJA 1987 s1(5); Crime and Courts Act 2013 Schedule 17 | Director; the Crown Court approves a DPA |
| Recovery | Confiscation and civil recovery | Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, via CJA 1987 s1(6A) | Director; the court orders |
What can a section 2 notice require?
Table 2. Section 2 powers (Criminal Justice Act 1987, s2).
| Power or offense | Subsection | Limit or maximum |
|---|---|---|
| Answer questions or give information | s2(2) | At a set place and time, or at once |
| Produce documents and explain them | s2(3) | If missing, say where they are |
| Search premises | s2(4) and (5) | Warrant from a justice of the peace, executed by a constable |
| Banking records | s2(10) | Consent of the person owed confidence, or the Director's authorization |
| Privileged material | s2(9) | Protected; a lawyer may have to give a client's name and address |
| Failing to comply without reasonable excuse | s2(13) | On summary conviction: up to six months, a level 5 fine or both |
| A false or misleading statement, made knowingly or recklessly | s2(14) and (15) | On indictment: up to two years, a fine or both; summary: up to six months, a fine or both |
| Falsifying, concealing or destroying relevant documents when an investigation is known or suspected | s2(16) and (17) | On indictment: up to seven years, a fine or both; summary: up to six months, a fine or both |
A notice can go to the person under investigation or to anyone the Director believes has relevant information.
What happens if the SFO investigates you or your company?
A section 2 interview exists "to establish facts by obtaining from the interviewee full and truthful answers" (SFO, Section 2 interviews). Those answers can be used against the interviewee only in limited cases, such as a prosecution for a false statement (s2(8)).
Take an employee interviewed about their employer. A lawyer who also acts for the employer is unlikely to be allowed in.
What does the failure to prevent fraud offense ask of a company?
Start with the Home Office's example. The head of payroll at company A diverts staff pension contributions to fund other projects inside the company. Company A could be liable unless a court decides it had reasonable procedures in place (Home Office guidance, 2.8).
That is the offense in section 199 of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023: a person associated with the organization, such as an employee, agent or subsidiary, commits a fraud offense intending to benefit it.
It is a defense for the organization to prove it had "such prevention procedures as it was reasonable in all the circumstances to expect" (s199(4)). The SFO can prosecute the offense for England, Wales and Northern Ireland (guidance 2.7.1). Its investigative powers extend to Scotland, but prosecution there lies with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (footnote 21).
Table 3. Three UK failure to prevent offenses (each extends to the whole UK).
| Offense | Who is caught | Defense | In force |
|---|---|---|---|
| Failure to prevent bribery, Bribery Act 2010 s7 | A relevant commercial organization | "Adequate procedures" | 1 July 2011 |
| Failure to prevent facilitation of tax evasion, Criminal Finances Act 2017 s45 | A relevant body | Reasonable prevention procedures | 30 September 2017 |
| Failure to prevent fraud, ECCTA 2023 s199 | A large organization: two or more of turnover over £36 million, balance sheet total over £18 million, more than 250 employees in the previous financial year (s201) | Reasonable prevention procedures | 1 September 2025 (guidance 1.3) |
The guidance sets six principles:
- Top level commitment: leaders reject profit based on fraud.
- Risk assessment: existing assessments of fraud and other economic crime can be extended to the frauds in scope.
- Proportionate risk based procedures: being regulated does not "automatically qualify" a firm's procedures.
- Due diligence: on the people who perform services for the firm.
- Communication, including training: the policy reaches every level.
- Monitoring and review: detection built for employee fraud against the firm may need extending to frauds that benefit it.
"Extend the AML risk assessment, do not reuse it: the failure to prevent fraud offense is about fraud your own people and agents commit to benefit the firm, and the Home Office guidance warns that procedures tailored to a different type of risk will not necessarily be an adequate response," says Ufuk Gürdaş, Compliance Specialist.
What is a deferred prosecution agreement?
A DPA lets a designated prosecutor suspend the charge against an organization while it meets agreed terms, once the Crown Court approves the deal. Schedule 17 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 sets the rules for England and Wales, in force since 24 February 2014: designated prosecutors include the Director of Public Prosecutions and the SFO Director, an individual cannot be a party, and the terms must be "fair, reasonable and proportionate" (paragraphs 1 to 4 and 8).
Rolls-Royce's DPA of 17 January 2017 added a compliance program to its disgorgement, penalty and costs. Under the SFO's corporate cooperation guidance of 24 April 2025, a company that self reports and cooperates fully can expect an invitation to negotiate a DPA unless exceptional circumstances apply.
Which notable cases has the SFO brought?
LIBOR shows why a case list needs a date. The SFO's investigation into how some traders and submitters influenced benchmark interest rates led to nine convictions of senior bankers. On 23 July 2025 the Supreme Court found two unsafe and the SFO sought no retrial; by 9 October 2026 the Court of Appeal had overturned six more (SFO response to the Supreme Court judgment, last updated 9 October 2026).
Table 4. Notable SFO cases (SFO and court documents, read 19 October 2026).
| Case | Date | Outcome | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rolls-Royce | 17 January 2017 | DPA (Rolls-Royce judgment) | £258,170,000 disgorgement, £239,082,645 penalty, £12,960,754 costs | Nigeria, Indonesia, Russia, Thailand, India, China, Malaysia |
| Airbus | 31 January 2020 | DPA (Airbus judgment) | €990,963,712 including costs | Joint investigation with France; US Department of Justice in parallel |
| LIBOR and EURIBOR | 23 July 2025 to 9 October 2026 (appeals) | Nine convictions (two guilty pleas, seven jury verdicts); eight now unsafe or overturned | None stated | No retrial sought after the Supreme Court ruling |
| Ultra Electronics | 1 May 2026 | DPA, failure to prevent bribery | £10 million penalty, £4.8 million costs | Yearly reports to the SFO for three years |
Airbus holds the larger DPA: the judge said its sanction exceeded the total paid under all earlier DPAs (Airbus judgment, paragraph 1).
How can you tell a real SFO call or email from a scam?
The SFO warns that criminals use its name by email, telephone and WhatsApp (SFO scam guidance, 12 November 2024).
- SFO email always comes from a .gov.uk address.
- A blurry, stretched or skewed logo on a letter is likely a scam.
- The SFO never asks for bank details; a request for money to return cryptocurrency is a scam sign.
- The SFO never calls from its switchboard number, and a sender who will not prove they work there is a warning sign.
- Doubtful messages go as an attachment to alerts@sfo.gov.uk, subject "SFO Authentication Request". That address takes no fraud reports.
This is impersonation fraud; the SFO says to break contact and not reply.
How do you report fraud to the SFO?
Table 5. Where to report (SFO pages, read 19 October 2026).
| You are | Route | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| An individual reporting serious fraud, bribery or corruption | The SFO's secure reporting portal | For serious or complex cases |
| A whistleblower | The same portal (SFO whistleblower page) | 167 disclosures from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, action on 153 |
| A company self reporting | intelunit@sfo.gov.uk (corporate self report) | Other material sent there is not assessed; SFO contact within 48 business hours (cooperation guidance) |
| A company's lawyer, before a self report | GeneralCounsel@sfo.gov.uk | Talks with the Director of Legal Services, open since 13 October 2026 |
| A victim of everyday fraud | Report Fraud, 0300 123 2040 (SFO notice on Report Fraud) | Replaced Action Fraud on 4 December 2025 |
A whistleblowing consultation open until 8 January 2027 seeks views on a proposed SFO scheme of financial rewards for people who report economic crime.
How does the UK SFO differ from India's SFIO and New Zealand's SFO?
Table 6. Three bodies behind the same initials.
| Body | Where | Legal basis | Investigates | Prosecutes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Serious Fraud Office (SFO) | England, Wales and Northern Ireland | Criminal Justice Act 1987 | Serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption | Yes |
| Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) | India, Ministry of Corporate Affairs | Set up 2 July 2003; notified under Companies Act 2013 s211(1) on 21 July 2015 (SFIO history) | Affairs of companies the Government assigns | Prosecutes or recommends prosecution |
| Serious Fraud Office | New Zealand | Serious Fraud Office Act 1990 (SFO NZ, Legislation) | Serious or complex fraud | Yes, through a panel of specialist lawyers |
One decision stays with a large organization's compliance lead: whether the section 199 fraud risk assessment is a document of its own or a chapter of the AML one. The guidance says extending an existing assessment may work best (3.2).
Related terms
- Fraud vs money laundering. How the two crimes differ and where they meet.
- Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). The fraud examination credential awarded by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE).
- Employee fraud. Fraud by staff against their own employer.
- Ponzi scheme. Investment fraud that pays earlier investors with money from newer ones.
