BIPRU — Prudential sourcebook for Banks, Building Societies and Investment Firms

Category: Compliance & AML · Reviewed by Al Jabbar, Broker · Specialist Risks · Last reviewed June 2026

Definition

BIPRU is the Prudential sourcebook for Banks, Building Societies and Investment Firms. It implemented the Capital Requirements Directive (CRD) and Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR) in the UK before the introduction of the Investment Firms Prudential Regime (IFPR). For most banks the relevant rules now sit in the PRA Rulebook, and for most FCA investment firms the relevant rules sit in MIFIDPRU. BIPRU still applies to a residual population.

Legal / Regulatory basis

Made under FSMA sections 137A and 138, BIPRU implements the Capital Requirements Directive (Directive 2013/36/EU) and Capital Requirements Regulation (Regulation (EU) No 575/2013) as those were retained in UK law and subsequently amended.

How it works in practice

BIPRU is divided into 14 chapters covering application, capital, credit risk, market risk, operational risk, large exposures, liquidity, group risk and consolidated supervision, public disclosure (guide 3), and reporting. The principal interest for an insurance intermediary is the residual population question — most insurance brokers were never BIPRU firms because intermediation is regulated under IDD/MIPRU, not under CRD/CRR.

Common variations

The migration to MIFIDPRU from 1 January 2022 (FCA Policy Statement PS21/17) substantially emptied BIPRU for FCA solo-regulated firms. The Investment Firm Group consolidated capital test under MIFIDPRU 2 replaces the BIPRU 8 consolidation regime.

Example

An insurance broker authorised solely for insurance distribution under IDD does not fall within BIPRU. A firm that also holds MiFID permissions for arranging deals in investments may previously have been a BIPRU €730k, €125k or €50k firm; from 2022 such a firm became an SNI (small and non-interconnected) or non-SNI MIFIDPRU firm.

See also

• GENPRU — General Prudential sourcebook
• MIPRU — Prudential sourcebook for Mortgage and Home Finance Firms, and Insurance Intermediaries
• IPRU — Interim Prudential sourcebook
• Threshold Conditions

References

FCA Handbook, Prudential sourcebook for Banks, Building Societies and Investment Firms (BIPRU). Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, sections 137A and 138. UK retained Capital Requirements Directive (Directive 2013/36/EU) and Capital Requirements Regulation (Regulation (EU) No 575/2013). FCA Policy Statement PS21/17.

Last reviewed

By Apex Insurance Brokers on 2026-06-11.

This entry is part of the Apex Insurance Wiki. Last reviewed by Apex Insurance Brokers on 2026-06-11. Apex Insurance Brokers Limited, FCA FRN 724952, Companies House 07014570. Not regulated advice — consult your broker on your specific position.