Martin Wheatley said the emphasis for previous regulators was to look at firms’ regulatory reports for signs of suspicious sales or activity.

But, in an interview with the Daily Mail, he said one of the replacements for the Financial Services Authority (FSA) would look for new ways to gather information.

“We want to create something very different from the problems of the past – new ideas and new ways in how we operate,” he said.

“For starters, we will be much more sensitive to information we receive about financial products and the way they are being sold.

“And if it’s not the product that’s the problem, we’ll take a look at the way it’s being sold.

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“As part of our new plan to check on firms, we will look at how they make their money and scrutinise where their margins are.

“Of course, businesses need to be profitable. But we will be interested to see where the highest margins lie.

“What’s new is that we won’t just be relying on regulatory reports back from firms, but on reports from consumer bodies, internet monitoring, the media and even on Twitter.

“In the past, the emphasis was on firms’ regulatory reporting – we will be much broader in our approach.”

Wheatley, who has praised financial advisers for their treatment of clients, will head up the FCA which, along with the Prudential Regulation Authority, will assume the responsibilities of the FSA.