Britain's finance watchdog is leading the way on diversity

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is introduction gender and ethnicity diversity targets, leading by example when it comes to increasing diversity in finance.

The finance watchdog on Tuesday pledged to make sure that 45% of its senior leadership team are women by 2020, and 50% by 2025. The FCA also wants 8% of its senior leadership team to be black, Asian, or minority ethnic (BAME) by 2020 and 13% by 2025. These targets reflect the social makeup of the UK, based on Office of National Statistics figures.

39% of the FCA's senior leadership team are currently women, while 3% of the team identify as BAME.

The targets come after the FCA signed the "Women in Finance Charter" in June, a government-led initiative to promote gender diversity.

FCA CEO Andrew Bailey says in an emailed statement on Tuesday:

"Every day we make judgments and decisions that impact almost everyone in the UK so it's vital that our people reflect the society that we serve. I am proud of the FCA's work to date on diversity. Setting targets for the FCA Senior Leadership Team to be representative of the female and BAME UK populations is a logical next step.

"I believe that we are nothing without our people, and a workplace which combines talented people and diverse backgrounds is the best sort. Encouraging diverse attitudes and opinions in our daily work makes us a stronger and more effective regulator."