News Archive

The APCC is holding an event on 2 February for member firms only on the FSA's Business Risk Awareness Workshops and follow up assessments. 

BUSINESS RISK AWARENESS EVENT on 2 FEBRUARY
We are pleased to confirm this event in the City of London on the morning of 2 February.  This will be an interactive session by Grahame Hinselwood and Nick Ross of the FSA on the FSA’s Business Risk Awareness Roadshows and follow up Proactive Regulatory Review.  Grahame and Nick will provide a first hand insight into the format and content of the initial stage workshops and the different types of follow up assessments and the content of these assessments.  Every small retail firm is being invited to the roadshow events and the follow up assessments so it is key that consultants are fully aware of the purpose and scope of this FSA project. 

We are very pleased that the FSA is actively looking to assist consultancy firms in helping their clients prepare for these assessments.  The event will be interactive with ample opportunity for you to ask questions regarding the assessments and to provide feedback to them.  More details of these roadshows can be found on the FSA website.

The event will take place in the Schroders Auditorium at their offices in 31 Gresham Street. Registration for the event opens at 9:30 with the event starting at 10 am, the event is expected to finish between 12:30 and 1 pm.

The event is available to delegates from member firms only and the cost is £48 per delegate (i.e. £40 plus VAT), please complete the attached registration form for each delegate wanting to attend.  If your firm is unable to send the fee (either by cheque or online payment) with the completed registration form due to time constraints then we will invoice you for the delegate fee so that payment can follow later.  Further details are on the registration form. 

The APCC intends to respond to the FSA's CP following the Mortgage Market Review.  At this stage it is gathering responses from members and other interested parties.

MORTGAGE MARKET REVIEW
The mortgage market review – CP31/11 , issued on 19th December as an early Christmas present to the industry, is alleged to be the biggest consultation the FSA have published.

It is wide ranging and has significant potential impact to both lenders and intermediaries, not to mention customers who will be impacted by the proposed changes.

The APCC would like to respond to this CP and we are interested in hearing from members in this respect. We believe it is in our interests to do so and will help continue to raise our profile within the FSA.

To this extent we would appreciate responses to the following questions so we can determine the best way forward:

• Are you interested in providing feedback to the Consultation?
• If the FSA were willing to attend a meeting where we could facilitate a Q&A and provide some feedback to them would you wish to attend (probably London based)?
• If the FSA were not willing to attend would you be interested in attending an APCC session to discuss the impact and gather feedback towards our response?
• Do you want to provide the APCC with responses to any of the specific questions from the consultation but not attend a meeting? (see list of questions for completion)
• Is your interest in a) intermediaries b) lenders c) both?

We recognise that it is often difficult for a wide ranging body such as the APCC to get a consensus on every aspect but we do hope to be able to get consensus on a lot of points and can then provide a split view on the other parts. It does, however, take a great deal of time and effort to co-ordinate and draft up and the earlier we start the better.

Please send in your response to the APCC by 27th January.

We now have dates for events in 2012 so please put them in your diary, more details to follow in the New Year.

Dates for events in 2012 are below, more details will follow in the New Year.

2 February:  London - Business Risk Awareness Workshop
12 March:  London - Annual Forum
20 June:  Huddersfield - Northern Forum
19 September:  Huddersfield - Northern Forum
19 December:  Huddersfield - Northern Forum

The APCC has been working with the FSA and the ICAEW on providing guidance compliance consultants on S166 reports.

The APCC started a project back in late 2010 to prepare guidelines for consultants on the preparation of S166 reports.  The initial short form guidance covered report scoping, preparation of the fee quote, the report content, preparing the report opinion, discussing the report with the client and finally getting paid for the work.  This guidance was discussed in detail with the FSA and was near finalisation when structural change within the FSA meant that the role of the S166 report oversight team was moved to the PRA.  The PRA team had already engaged with the ICAEW to provide technical guidance to ICAEW members on producing S166 reports and the FSA then asked this to be extended to cover reports dealing with conduct risk.  As a result the APCC was invited to join the ICAEW working party for the technical guidance being produced.  Our input has made the technical guidance (which is still in draft form and not yet published) significantly more relevant to compliance consultants than it would otherwise have been. 

Once the ICAEW tehcnical guidance is published we will ensure it is available to all our members.

On 25 November the APCC held a Northern Forum in Huddersfield.  The main item for the forum was a presentation by the FSA on the Business Risk Awareness Workshops being held for every retail firm and the follow up process for these workshops.

Delegates from APCC member firms were invited to a free workshop and forum on 25 November in Huddersfield at which the main item was a presentation on the Business Risk Awareness Workshops being held for every retail firm and the follow up process for these workshops.  Nicholas Ross and Grahame Hinselwood from the FSA talked through the workshops and ran a live case study for delegates to comment on.  The presentation was very useful for both delegates and the FSA as feedback from delegates will enable the FSA to improve the case study and make it more relevant to the various different retail firm types.   Delegates at the event are now much clearer about the purpose of these workshops and the follow up actions the FSA will be taking with firms.

 
Since the early summer of 2011 the APCC has been working with the FSA to identify ONA issues and their solutions.

Consultants from APCC member firms have identified an extensive list of issues with the ONA reporting system and these have formed the basis of extensive correspondence with the FSA over how these issues should be addressed.  While it is clear that resource constraints within the FSA mean that there will be no large scale review and improvement of the ONA system in the near term nevertheless the exercise has been useful.  We will be publishing the list of issues and their workrounds shortly.

The APCC held an RDR and Platforms workshop on the afternoon of 19 October.  Rory Percival and Colin Wilcox from the FSA attended.  Rory Percival plays a leading role at FSA on the implementation of Retail Distribution Review, platform use by intermediaries and suitability of investment advice.  The purpose of the workshop was to discuss the more complex issues arising in these areas. 
This was an interactive workshop where delegates had the chance both before and during the event to raise issues and question with the FSA and to discuss them with their fellow consultants on what was and still is clearly a contentious area. 

The APCC held an RDR and Platforms workshop on the afternoon of 19 October in central London.  Rory Percival and Colin Wilcox from the FSA attended.  Rory Percival plays a leading role at FSA on the implementation of Retail Distribution Review, platform use by intermediaries and suitability of investment advice.  The purpose of the workshop was to discuss the more complex issues arising in these areas.  Delegates were asked to send in their issues so they can be raised with the FSA beforehand so they could come fully armed.  This was an interactive workshop giving delegates the chance both before and during the event to raise issues and question with the FSA and to discuss them with their fellow consultants on what is clearly a contentious area. 

A number of issues were not fully resolved during the workshop and these are being followed up with the FSA, delegates and APCC members will receive details of this correspondence as soon as it is completed.

STREAMED LIVE TO YOUR DESK
We were ablet to stream the workshop to consultant's desktop as a webinar so that they did not need to travel to London for the workshop.  Delegates who attend the workshop via the webinar were able to listen to the workshop, view the presentation and send in questions during the workshop via the Webex chat room facility.

TIMINGS AND LOCATION AND REGISTRATION DETAILS
The workshop was from 2 pm until 4 pm on 19 October and for those not using the webinar facility the workshop was at the offices of Resources Global, 117 Houndsditch, London EC3A 7BT. 

The workshop was free to delegates from member firms and £60 (£50 plus VAT) for delegates from non-members, whether delegates attended in person or via the webinar.   Delegates from non-member firms were only allowed to attend by webinar.

In August 2011 the APCC responded to the FSA's consultation on the FCA Approach to Regulation document pubished in June 2011.

The APCC held a forum on 10 August in London to get initial responses to the FCA approach document and this was followed up with a draft response which was circulated to members for their comments and further input.  Following on from this a final response was sent to the FSA on 31 August.  Click here to download the APCC response document.

The APCC is grateful to those member firms who were not on holiday during this consultation period (and to those that were) and who were able to add input to the response document.

On 15 July the APCC attended the FSA Smaller Business Practitioner Panel Trade Body Briefing.

The APCC and a number of other trade bodies met with the FSA Smaller Business Practitioner Panel on 15 July and the Panel briefed us on its activities over the last six months and its planned activities over the next 12 months.  At the end of the briefing there was a wide ranging question and answer session where delegates raised a number of issues. 

Members can access a summary of the meeting here.

On 10 August the APCC held a forum in London to discuss feedback to the FSA/FCA on the FCA Approach to Regulation June document and to ask attendees for input on the APCC's future strategy. 

Charles Meade King lead the discussion on the FCA Approach to Regulation June document and a number of issues and concerns were raised and discussed.   It was agreed that these issues would be circulated to the membership for further consultation. 



At the end there was a wide ranging discussion on the APCC's strategic direction accompanied by light refreshments.

UPDATED FSA APPLICATION PACKS
The FSA application packs have been updated, the forms that have been changed are:

The forms that have been changed are:-
• Core details and appendices.
• Supplement for Investments, Mortgages and non-investment insurance contracts and also Connected Travel Insurance.
• Supplement for Securities and Futures Firms (complex) and (non-complex).
• Supplement for Investment Management Firms.
• Supplement for Advisers and Arrangers.
• Relevant checklists and declarations.

The changes include corrections to dates, legislation and handbook references, improving consistency throughout the application forms, removing questions that were no longer relevant and adding further questions reflecting the FSA’s more intrusive approach and general developments in the marketplace e.g. TCF, Non advised sales, UCIS, Platforms, Mortgages, PPI.

The FSA is continuing to work on updating and revising the remaining less frequently used supplements.

The FSA is now asking applicant firms to complete the IT self-assessment questionnaire which is displayed on the completed “build your own application” page of the FSA website.  When completed the form indicates whether the applicant firm needs to complete a Complex IT form.  The applicant firm is required to include this completed form in its application pack. 

The FSA will continue to accept old versions of the packs until the end of December 2011 but applicant firms should expect to be asked those new/additional questions in the revised packs by case officers.

An informal APCC northern forum has been arranged for Wednesday 27th July.

The forum will start at 10 am for finish at approximately 12:30.

The agenda for the event has been left relatively loose but will include the following: 

• Future direction of the APCC
• Desires of members – i.e. benefits of membership and ideal solutions
• Engagement with other bodies, AIFA etc?
• Future industry direction – product risks / consumer engagement
• FSA engagement and recent reviews/experiences – consistency challenge
• General discussion.

If you would like to attend please email Hilary Spivey.  Spaces are limited and will be on first come first served basis.

Towergate Risk Solutions and Hiscox Insurance Company Limited have teamed up to create an enhanced professional indemnity facility for APCC members.

The competitive premiums which are available to all APCC member firms include professional indemnity, public and employer liability.  D&O cover is also available, again at competitive rates, to corporate APCC member firms.

For further information and a proposal form please e-mail charles.wintour@towergate.co.uk.

This financial promotion has been approved by Towergate Underwriting Group Limited.  Towergate Risk Solutions is a trading name of Towergate Underwriting Group Limited. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

The APCC annual forum event took place on Wednesday 9 March 2011 at the new venue for us of the Law Society in Chancery Lane.

Our annual forum event took place in London on 9 March 2011.  At this event speakers from the FSA presented on a variety of topics including a key note speech looking at major regulatory themes.  Our keynote speaker, David Geale, unfortunately fell ill at the last minute and Ian Smyth stepped in at short notice to give the speech and to answer the many questions from the floor during the forum event. 

Mukhtar Singh Rai of the Financial Ombudsman Service spoke on how the FOS comes to the decisions it does, how firms should deal (and how they should not deal) with customer complaints and FOS complaint investigations.  He also covered compensation calculations and how the FOS is consulting on improving its communication strategy with regulated firms.

Ian Hargreaves of Addleshaw Goddard gave a presentation on the Bribery Act giving guidance on how this very wide-ranging act impacts on a firm's system and controls policies, its staff training requirements and also its entertainment, expenses, commission and other payment policies.

Fiona King and Tracey Sampson briefed delegates on client assets, in particular setting out the common failings of firms in this area and their views on why these failings arise and the steps the FSA is taking to strengthen this area.

Jonathon Crook and Jeremy Irving from Evershed spoke on how firms should deal with the FSA's enforcement division and gave practical examples of how this works in practice. 

Illness again unfortunately intervened and the FSA presentation on S166 reports and suitability had to be replaced at short notice by a presentation from Tamara Cizeika of Eversheds on RDR - issues, options and next steps. 

Simon Collins, chairman of the APCC, gave a presentation on the activities of the APCC and asked delegates for their views on the proposed future direction of the APCC and the constitution of the Steering Council.  The AGM for the APCC then followed.

After the end of the formal events there was a very informal networking session for delegates and speakers hosted by the APCC in the Old Council Chamber at the Law Society.

The keynote speech and the slides used by the presenters during this event are now available from the members area of the website. 

On the morning of 22 February 2011 representatives from APCC member firms will be having a roundtable discussion with the FRC on the implementation of the UK Stewardship Code and in particular on the compliance statement that is now required to be published by all regulated asset manager firms. 

There is a very limited number of spaces currently available for this event.  If you would like to attend please email Hilary Spivey.

New items recently added to the website include:

Annual Forum Event:  Details of our forum on 9 March 2011 are now on the website.  The registration form will be available shortly but please save the day in your diary. 


Complaints Handling Workshop for Consultants:  The FSA held a workshop for consultants on complaints handling on 20 January 2011.  More details on this are available to members.


Conduct Risk Department - S166 reports:  The APCC held a meeting with the FSA on S166 reports in November 2010.  A summary of this meeting and good practice guidelines for these reports will be available to members shortly.


Authorisation department:  Service levels within this department have dropped year on year.  We have had a dialogue with the FSA on this since Q4 2009 and a workshop with the FSA on July 8 where consultants expressed their concerns.  We had a follow up meeting in September with the FSA as a result of which working practice guidelines are now available to consultants.

Promotion of Unregulated Collective Investment Schemes: The FSA uncovered clear examples of abuse in this area and a lack of understanding by retail financial advisors of their responsibility to clients.  The FSA held a workshop for consultants on 24 September setting out their views on this and we are following this up by collating queries and FSA responses.

The event was aimed at consultants who carry out assessments of the quality of regulated firms handling of complaints. At the event the FSA set out its findings on regulated firm's complaints handling procedures and how it plans to deal with this area going forward. Consultants were able to ask questions and raise specific issues with the FSA on this subject.

A summary of the event, the presentation slides and the questions and answers session are available to members. 

As at 1 December 2010 there were only 7 documents containing FSA confirmed industry guidance.  These can all be found on the FSA website by clicking here. 

The confirmed guidance deals with:

• Banking Conduct of Business
• MiFID Connect - Outsourcing
• MiFID Connect - Suitability and Appropriateness
• MiFID Connect - Investment Research
• AIC guidance on Investment Policies
• Transparency and conflict of interest disclosure in the commercial insurance market
• IMA - Paperless renounciation/transder of units/shares in investment funds

Mortgage market review:  The FSA is putting on roadshow for intermediaries on the review in December and January in a number of locations in England and Scotland.  All are fully booked except for the December 14 one in Edinburgh.  Click here for the FSA events page.

Liquidity Reporting: Workshops on liquidity reporting for banks and full scope BIPRU investment firms are being held by the FSA in January, February and March 2011.  Click here for the FSA events page.

Training and Competence Workshop:  The FSA is considering holding this workshop in 2011, email eventsbooking@fsa.gov.uk if you are interested in attending a workshop on this topic.

The APCC had a follow up meeting with the FSA's Permissions Department in September 2010.

In September 2010 the APCC had a follow up meeting with representatives of the FSA's Permissions Department to discuss progress in improving operating standards within this department.  While there was no step change to date in these standards the meeting indicated that the FSA was taking action to address the issues.  This included reviewing the working practices of teams within the department, identifying the better practices adopted by teams and then rolling these out to all the teams within the department.   A result of this is the working practice guidelines to which all teams within this department should now adher.  These guidelines are not service standards but do indicate the working practices that consultants can reasonably expect the FSA to work to.


A summary of the meeting and the working practice guidelines are available on the members area of this website.