(Bloomberg) -- The UK’s financial watchdog pushed back against criticism of its plan to name firms it’s investigating at an early stage, which it thinks will boost transparency and deterrence.

The Financial Conduct Authority believes the proposals are timely, according to its response to a House of Lords Financial Services Regulation Committee published on Friday. Firms and consumers benefit from knowing which issues are in the watchdog’s sights, leading to better standards of conduct, it said. 

“We know that a number of those to whom we are accountable have frequently and forcefully expressed their frustration at our lack of transparency,” said Therese Chambers and Steve Smart, the FCA’s joint executive directors for enforcement and market oversight.

The FCA’s “name and shame” proposals have faced a backlash from the industry and lawyers since they were published in February. The House of Lords panel earlier this month said identifying the subjects of investigations “risks the overall integrity of the market” and have a disproportionate and unwarranted impact on companies and their share prices.

The committee also criticized the FCA for lack of a cost-benefit study — something the regulator said Friday “is not required,” adding it will engage further with stakeholders to work out the details for the plan.

FCA’s investigations currently average round 40 months to complete if they settle and 64 months if they do not, Sara Cody, a lawyer at Linklaters said. “Whilst the consultation indicates an aspiration to reduce the length of investigations, it gives little insight into how, in practice, the FCA will achieve this.”

The FCA, which previously only published details of investigations in rare cases, will decide on naming firms based on public interest and will continue not naming individuals in keeping with privacy rules.

Firm and individuals would have the ability to challenge a decision to make an investigation public, the regulator said.

“To tackle unlawful behavior and ensure the UK’s high standards for the protection of consumers and market integrity are met, our enforcement work needs to deliver impactful deterrence,” the FCA’s chief enforcers said.

(Updates with lawyer comment in the sixth paragraph)

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