On 16 August 2019, the Upper Tribunal published its decision about a Chief Operating Officer of the Wealth Division at a major bank (the COO). The Tribunal found that the COO had failed to act with integrity (in breach of Statement of Principle 1), but that the prohibition order imposed by the FCA was
Upper Tribunal dismisses application by financial advisers firm to suspend an FCA Supervisory Notice until final hearing
On 25 July 2019, the Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) published a decision in respect of Sussex Independent Financial Advisers Limited (Sussex).
Sussex sought to challenge a Supervisory Notice issued by the FCA which removed all of the firm’s permitted regulatory activities with effect from 8 July 2019. It also imposed requirements restricting Sussex’s
Hope for investors in London Capital & Finance as FSCS continues to explore whether there are grounds for compensation
London Capital & Finance (LC&F), which collapsed in January 2019, was authorised by the FCA in relation to its promotional activities. However, the actual sale of mini-bonds by LC&F was not a regulated activity and so not typically protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), which has called into question the scope of protection
FCA publishes Notice of Undertaking by debt management firm in relation to unfair cancellation terms in standard form contracts
On 23 May 2019, the FCA published a Notice of Undertaking against the debt management firm, stating that it was concerned that:
- two of the terms in the firm’s standard form contracts had the potential to give the firm discretion to charge consumers unspecified amounts should a consumer cancel the contract, which could lead to
FCA rejects Complaints Commissioner’s recommendation for ex gratia payment in respect of loss related to defective Financial Services Register
The complainant suffered loss after she invested in a firm which was later identified as a clone. Before investing, the complainant had contacted the FCA to ask whether the firm (also regulated in Austria) was a regulated entity. The FCA confirmed that the firm was legitimate based on its registration number. The FCA also recommended
FCA publishes undertaking by firm in relation to unfair termination clause in standard client terms
On 9 May 2019, the FCA published an undertaking given by an investment management firm in relation to a term in its standard client contracts which allowed the firm to terminate the contract without the requirement to provide prior written notice.
The FCA considered that the term was likely to be considered unfair under the
The FCA has announced that there will be an independent investigation into the failure of London Capital & Finance
On 1 April 2019, the FCA announced that there will be an independent investigation into the failure of London Capital & Finance (LC&F).
The FCA stated that the investigation should cover:
- whether the existing regulatory system adequately protects retail purchasers of mini-bonds from unacceptable levels of harm; and
- the FCA’s supervision of LC&F.
Financial Ombudsman Service – increased award limits
On 8 March 2019, the FCA confirmed that from 1 April 2019 the Financial Ombudsman Service’s (FOS) current £150,000 award limit will change to:
- £350,000 for complaints about actions or omissions by firms on or after 1 April 2019; and
- £160,000 for complaints about acts of omissions by firms before 1 April 2019, and which
The FCA fines an individual for failing to observe proper standards of market conduct and on similar facts issues its first formal decision under its competition powers against three asset management firms
On 21 February 2019, the FCA fined two asset management firms for breach of competition law. No fine was imposed on the other asset management firm, Newton Investment Management Limited (Newton), as it had been given immunity under the competition leniency programme. This decision followed the FCA’s announcement on 4 February 2019 that it had
New Regulator for Claims Management Companies – FCA takes over
On 22 June 2017, the Financial Guidance and Claims Bill (the Bill) was introduced in the House of Lords. Since then it has passed through its first and second readings and proceeded to committee stage on 6 September 2017. The Bill follows an independent review led by Carol Brady in 2016, which recommended that