Getting clear about disclosure

The FCA recently conducted a suitability review of 656 IFAs and intermediary firms. The good news is that overall it found firms were indeed largely providing suitable advice. There were some variations with restricted firms and network members generally doing better than independent directly authorised firms.

It did, however, express general disappointment at the levels of disclosure being provided – with 69 per cent of network members offering acceptable levels while, again, the directly authorised firms performed worse – with only 46 per cent meeting expected standards.

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Creating a culture of compliance for the SMCR

What is culture?  The Oxford English Dictionary defines it as – ‘The philosophy, practices, and attitudes of an institution, business, or other organisation’.

Generally culture is something that develops naturally over long periods of time shaped as it is by so many factors – societal, demographic, political, social economic etc.  It is certainly a very long period of time since the FCA started banging on about culture within financial services institutions – and their expectations in this regard.  The FCA’s message has been as unequivocal as it has been longstanding – that it is looking to hold senior management accountable for the embedding of compliant cultures and high ethical and conduct standards.  To judge by increases in enforcement levels relating to conduct – one could be forgiven for thinking that this has fallen largely on deaf ears.

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Orwellian regime

The cultural change that the Senior Managers and Certification Regime represents should not be underestimated

The Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR) rules apply to individuals working at regulated firms in banks, building societies, credit unions, PRA investment firms and foreign banks with branches operating in the UK.  The rules, which came into force on 7 March 2016, replace the Financial Conduct Authority’s former Approved Persons Regime (APER).

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What would you do if things go wrong and you’re under FCA scrutiny?

What, if anything, would you do if things go wrong and you find yourself being held accountable and under FCA scrutiny? Is there any guarantee that your firm would defend you and / or fund your defence, should it prove necessary? You should have this in writing. FCA investigations typically take 18 months or more plus – legal fees build up rapidly!

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What every SMF should be asking their employer

The Senior Manager & Certification Regime is now over six months old and many senior managers at banks and PRA designated firms are already getting used to their new responsibilities and the realities of increased accountability.

The FCA has published details of the degree to which firms are complying with the new regulatory requirements and it makes for rather poor reading!

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SM&CR regulatory references – further challenges for all

At the end of September the FCA published a policy statement in which it outlined its new ‘regulatory referencing’ requirements.

These new rules will affect firms and individuals already subject to the Senior Managers & Certification Regime from March 2017 onwards.  Firms on which the SM&CR will be imposed in 2018 will also have to comply.

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The very real dangers of the Senior Managers Regime: your survival guide

The new Senior Managers and Certification Regime aims to encourage senior managers at British financial firms to take responsibility for their actions, but its primary function is to hold them accountable for other people’s.

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The stark reality of the SM&CR for HR Directors

The Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SM&CR) is a great opportunity for the HR profession to truly be part of the senior management team within financial institutions, but it undoubtedly raises new challenges and indeed legitimate concerns for many, writes Neil Herbert, Director of T&C software firm HRComply.

For some time now I have been raising the issue of advancing regulatory creep on HR departments across the financial services sector.  Finally, and irrefutably, those implications have become reality.  The new SM&CR is already capturing banks and PRA-designated firms within its remit and is now set to roll out across the industry as a whole.

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The role of HR in the Senior Managers and Certification Regime

Neil Herbert reflects on how HR teams must step up to the plate under the new SM&CR regime.

No doubt to the relief of overworked compliance officers, ‘training and competence’ or T&C is coming more and more under the purview of human resources departments at banks.

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