Anthropic Joins UK FCA’s AI Sandbox as Second Cohort Kicks Off

Anthropic is supplying its Claude AI models to companies taking part in the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s second Supercharged Sandbox cohort, part of a broader push to help financial firms test AI tools under regulatory supervision.

Firms Get Access to Claude Tools

Participants will use Claude, along with Claude Code and Claude Cowork, to build applications spanning agent-led payments, fraud detection, compliance automation and AI governance. The cohort includes 21 organizations, among them Scottish Widows, Money Advice Trust and TrueLayer.

Applications Surge for Second Round

The FCA said it received 199 applications for this cohort, a 51% jump from the first round, pointing to rising interest in regulated spaces for AI experimentation.

Program Builds on Existing Partnerships

The sandbox works alongside the FCA’s existing ties with NVIDIA and NayaOne, which supply computing power and development tools. The regulator also launched a 10-week Agentic Academy with the Centre for Finance, Technology and Entrepreneurship to support AI agent development.

The Supercharged Sandbox targets firms still exploring AI use, while a separate FCA program, AI Live Testing, supports companies ready for live deployment.