INTRODUCTION
BY MARTIN WHEATLEY
So from the boardroom to point of sale and beyond, firms’ behaviour, attitudes and motivations must be about good conduct – especially in terms of the experiences and outcomes they offer their customers and clients, whether it is someone buying a basic product or completing a complex transaction.
We will allow firms to try new ideas and develop their business. In the UK there are more than two million people employed in financial and related professional services. (2)
We have more bank branches per person than France, Germany or Italy. Our insurance industry is the largest in Europe and the third largest in the world. The FCA will regulate with this in mind, along with all the other indicators of how important the industry is, and will be careful not to stifle growth.
The Financial Services Bill 2012 (the Bill), currently going through Parliament, provides new powers to help us achieve our outcomes. These include the ability to ban financial products, publish details of misleading financial promotions, and let people know when we are proposing to take disciplinary action against a firm. Of course, the Bill may be subject to further change. This document is a statement of intent for the future, detailing how the FCA will carry out the functions that will be entrusted to it by Parliament and society.
The FCA will specifically consider and address potential conduct issues in new firms entering the market, and existing firms we regulate. When we consider authorising a firm, we will look at its business model to ensure it meets the needs of consumers and does not place them, or the financial system as a whole, at undue risk. We will balance these high standards with allowing innovation and appropriate access to the market by new firms.
Through our new style of supervision we will increase our focus on the conduct at the very top of firms. Firms’ senior management teams set the culture of their organisations so we must ensure that the targets and aspirations set at the top turn into good outcomes for consumers. The six retail consumer outcomes that were set out in the Treating Customers Fairly (TCF) initiative(3) remain core to how we expect firms to treat their customers. These outcomes will be part of the normal focus of the FCA, part of our approach and our language. We will continue to use them as an important factor in guiding our regulatory decisions and actions.
…we will step in earlier, and act faster, when we identify problems that risk harming consumers or the integrity of the market.
The Financial Services Bill 2012, currently going through Parliament, provides new powers to help us achieve our outcomes. These include the ability to ban financial products, publish details of misleading financial promotions, and let people know when we are taking disciplinary action against a firm.
We will engage fully and openly with stakeholders, existing and new, to inform our understanding of risks in financial markets and to further inform our views of emerging consumer concerns. Making use of the information we gather, from a wide variety of sources, we will identify risks sooner and tolerate lower levels of risk. This means we will step in earlier, and act faster, when we identify problems that could harm consumers or the integrity of the market.
Whilst it is reasonable for consumers to take responsibility for the decisions they make, a balance must be struck. Consumers cannot always be expected to have enough financial knowledge, information and understanding of complex products and risks to make informed decisions.
2 Source: TheCityUK, Key facts about UK financial and professional services, April 2012 3
www.fsa.gov.uk/doing/regulated/tcf
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62