Earlier this year, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published the results of a market study into the use of digital comparison tools in a number of sectors, including car insurance, home insurance and credit...
Author - Emma Radmore
Emma Radmore
PRA publishes consultation papers on approach to supervision of third country firms after Brexit
The PRA has issued two consultation papers on its approach to branch authorisation and supervision, addressed to international banks and to international insurers. Both consultations close on 27 February 2018. The Bank...
ESMA and FCA issue statements on LEIs
In advance of the implementation date for MiFID II on 3 January 2018, ESMA has issued a public statement that provides a form of 6 month transitional period for certain trading venues and certain legal persons, to...
European Commission publishes proposals regarding capital requirements for investment firms
The European Commission is proposing an overhaul of the prudential requirements for investment firms by bringing in a two track system. The largest, more systemically important firms will be subject to the same rules...
EC publishes proposal to delay IDD application date
The European Commission has today published a legislative proposal to push back the application date of IDD until 1 October 2018, at the request of the European Parliament and Member States. Member states will still be...
FCA publishes second IDD policy statement
As the implementation date for the Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD) approaches, the FCA has published the second of its three policy statements on the implementation of IDD, PS17/27. This policy statement...
FCA publishes distributed ledger technology feedback statement
Following the publication of its discussion paper regarding the risks and opportunities, and characteristics of distributed ledger technology (DLT) in April 2017, the FCA’s feedback statement FS17/4 sets out...
Payment Services Regulator requires change to Direct Debit rules regarding switching Facilities Management providers
The Payment Services Regulator (PSR) has published its decision to require the operator of the Bacs payment system, of which the Direct Debit scheme is a part, to change its rules to help clients switch Facilities...
Law Commission to address electronic signatures and smart contracts in 13th Programme of Law Reform
The Law Commission has announced the programme of reforms it will be working on over the next 3 years. The projects include: Electronic signatures: there is an absence of explicit case law or legislation confirming...
Final text of ‘Basel IV’ published
The Basel Committee has endorsed the final set of reforms to Basel III (referred to by some as Basel IV). These reforms will mainly affect the affect the methodologies used by banks in calculating risk weighted assets. ...
PRA publishes final Policy Statement and Supervisory Statement regarding insurance special purpose vehicles
Following the publication of the Risk Transfer Regulations 2017 earlier this week, the PRA has now published the updated versions of Policy Statement (PS 26/17) and Supervisory Statement (SS 8/17) on the authorisation...
Risk Transformation Regulations 2017 published
The government has published the Risk Transformation Regulations 2017 (Regulations), which come into force on 8 December 2017, following publication of the draft text by HM Treasury in July. The Regulations enable the...
Regulation of crypto-currencies under negotiation
The UK government has published the answer to a written question asked of HM Treasury that reveals that they are in the process of negotiating amendments to the 4th Anti-Money Laundering Directive to bring virtual...
IFRS 9 transitional Regulation published
There has been concern about the anticipated regulatory capital impact when International Financial Reporting Standard 9 is implemented from January 2018, resulting from some firms seeing a significant increase in...
IAIS consults on draft Issues Paper on Index Based Insurances
The International Association of Insurance Supervisors has opened a consultation on a draft paper setting out issues on Index-based Insurances. Index Based Insurances involve contracts where a claim is defined with...
LMG proposal addresses issues of access, control and continuity of service in post-Brexit insurance sector
In light of Brexit-related concerns over continuity of service in the insurance sector, the London Market Group (LMG) has issued a proposal to the UK government detailing a mechanism whereby both the UK and EU are...
NEW BUSINESS CONTRACT TERMS REGULATIONS WITHDRAWN
The draft Business Contract Terms (Assignment of Receivables) Regulations 2017, which had been laid before Parliament on 14 September 2017, have now been withdrawn The draft regulations had been the subject of criticism...
ESMA publishes MiFID II Q&A clarifying trading obligation for shares
ESMA has updated its MiFID II Q&As to clarify the application of the trading obligation for shares to trade certain instruments on-venue. ESMA confirms that all EU investment firms that are part of a chain of...
International Association of Insurance Supervisors publishes updated Insurance Core Principles document
The International Association of Insurance Supervisors has published the latest update to its Insurance Core Principles document, which provides a globally accepted framework for supervision of the insurance sector...
Effective financial management and planning by insurance firms and groups: PRA consultation
The PRA has published a consultation paper which seeks the views on a draft supervisory statement on effective financial management and planning by insurance firms and groups. The draft supervisory statement is of...
Financial Exclusion: UK government publishes response to Lords Select Committee final report
Following the appointment in 2016 by the House of Lords of a Select Committee to investigate financial exclusion and access to mainstream financial services, the Committee published its final report, ‘Tackling...
CMA investigation in the investment consultancy services market
Following the referral of the investment consultancy services market by the FCA to the CMA earlier this year, the CMA is now entering the phase of further information gathering and has updated its investigations page...
Treasury Committee inquiry into household finances
On 8 November, the Treasury Committee announced the launch of a new inquiry that will examine problematic indebtedness, inter-generational issues, lifetime financial planning and the effectiveness of the market in...
Wholesale insurance broker market: FCA launches Market Study
The FCA has today published terms of reference for a market study into the Wholesale insurance broker market. It is proposed that the market study will focus on how effectively competition in the market is working, in...
CITY OF LONDON LAW SOCIETY RESPONSE TO NEW BUSINESS CONTRACT TERMS REGULATIONS
The City of London Law Society has written to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy outlining a number of concerns with the draft Contract Terms (Assignment of Receivables) Regulations 2017. The...
PSR update on authorised push payment scams and reimbursement model consultation
The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has provided an update on progress in relation to authorised push payment (APP) scams, where fraudsters trick customers into instructing their banks to make a payment to what the...
Cheque imaging: consultation on supporting legislation
HM Treasury has published a consultation on secondary legislation to support the Image Clearing System (ICS) for cheques. The legislative proposals follow the amendments to the Bills of Exchange Act 1882 introduced by...
FCA consults on FSCS funding
Following its December 2016 consultation for views on how FSCS funding could be reformed, FCA has published a further consultation paper seeking to ensure FSCS continues to provide the right protections, works...
EPC consults on mobile contactless card payments
The European Payments Council (EPC) has launched a three month consultation on the Mobile Contactless Single Euro Payments Area Card Payments Implementation Interoperability Guidelines (MCP IIGs). EPC has updated the...
Insurance firms “falling short of renewal expectations”
In its latest multi-firm review, FCA has reviewed the manner in which general insurance firms have implemented transparency rules in insurance renewals. The rules apply when a firm sends a general insurance renewal...
REGULATIONS TO TACKLE CONTRACT TERMS PREVENTING ASSIGNMENT OF RECEIVABLES LAID BEFORE PARLIAMENT
A revised draft of the Business Contract Terms (Assignment of Receivables) Regulations 2017 has been laid before Parliament. The regulations provide that, save in respect of certain listed contracts, contractual terms...
Law Commission publishes draft Goods Mortgages Bill
Following a 2016 report in which the Law Commission concluded that the Bills of Sale Acts should be repealed and replaced with legislation less burdensome to lenders and more protective of borrowers, and its...
In the FCA pipeline
FCA has updated its policy development webpage for March 2017. Key publications due before the summer include: March/Q1 2017: IDD Implementation – CP1 MAR 1 changes: inside information relating to commodity derivatives...
NEW TRADE BODY FOR FINANCE SECTOR
A new body is to launch later in 2017, designed to be the authoritative voice for the finance sector in the UK. The name and brand of the body is to be announced in summer 2017. Bob Wigley will oversee the appointment...
Bills of sale Acts to be reformed
The Government has confirmed it will be reforming the bills of sale Acts. The Law Commission had recommended that using goods as security for a loan while still continuing to have use of them should continue to be...
FOS focuses on complainant age
The latest edition of Ombudsman News looks at the types of complaints FOS addresses from people under 25. PPI is not a concern for them, with the majority of “millennial and post millennial” complaints...
LMA responds to Treasury Committee’s call for evidence on EU exit and transitional arrangements
The Loan Market Association (LMA) has responded to the UK Treasury Committee’s call for evidence on EU exit and transitional arrangements, in preparation for the start of official negotiations upon the triggering...
FCA publishes Regulation Round-up
FCA’s latest “Regulation Round up” focuses on: some big issues FCA plans to address in 2017, such as the progress of the FAMR, the extension of the SMR and the closure of lending reviews; the interim...
PRA confirms increase in FSCS cover
PRA has issued a policy statement confirming it will increase the deposit protection limit provided by the FSCS to £85,000 from 30 January 2017. This is an increase from £75,000 to reflect currency fluctuations that...
Retail banking market investigation: CMA publishes responses to draft order
The CMA has published responses to the publication of its draft order following the retail market investigation. The responding institutions include: Dansk Bank HSBC Information Commissioner’s Office Santander...
Global banking capital rules postponed
The Basel Committee working on Basel III rules that will determine how much capital lenders would have to set aside against loans and other assets, announced on 3 January 2017 that more work was required on certain...
Government consults on single body for public financial guidance
The Treasury has issued a consultation on proposals to establish a single advisory body to replace, and bridge perceived gaps between, the Money Advice Service, the Pensions Advisory Service and ‘Pension...
FCA withdraws consumer credit info sheets
FCA has withdrawn the information sheets on consumer credit that were intended to become current on 18 January 2017. It says this is due to an error in the production of the information sheets for publication, and it...
INSOLVENCY RULES TO CHANGE IN APRIL 2017
The new rules which will guide insolvency practice are to come into force on 6 April 2017. The Insolvency Rules 2016 have been introduced to consolidate the Insolvency Rules 1986 and their numerous amendments into a...
CMA concerned about cashpoint merger
CMA has made a provisional finding that the acquisition by Diebold of Wincor may reduce competition in the supply of cashpoints in the UK. It invites comments on its provisional findings by 10 January 2017.
FCA explains RMAR
FCA has published a summary of why it collects data for the RMAR and how it uses it. Its key purpose is to help it supervise firms in a way to minimise poor consumer outcomes in the retail investment market. The data...
LMA responds to Treasury consultation on MLD4
The LMA has responded to HM Treasury’s consultation on the transposition of the Fourth Money Laundering Directive (MLD4) into national law. The LMA has said that there are certain instances where the obligation to...
European Commission publishes proposals to complete reform of financial regulatory system
The Commission has put forward a package of proposals including amendments to the Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR) and Directive (CRD), the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) and the Single Resolution...
CMA publishes draft Order following retail banking market investigation
In August 2016 the CMA published the report on its market investigation into the supply of retail banking services. Following the proposals of that Report, the CMA has published a draft Retail Banking Market...
FCA publishes interim asset management market study
The FCA has today published interim report MS15.2.2 in connection with their Asset Management Market Study. The FCA’s chief objective for the market study was to ensure that the market works well and that...
FPC to acquire powers to address systemic risks in the BTL mortgage market
The Financial Policy Committee of the Bank of England is to be given powers to address lending practices in the buy-to-let mortgage sector from early 2017. This move follows the FPC’s acquisition of such powers in...
BBA announces update to Access to Banking Protocol
The BBA has said that it will update the Access to Banking Protocol in response to an independent review into the effectiveness of the Protocol one year after implementation. The Protocol was put in place in May 2015 to...
FCA and Treasury respond to CMA retail banking market report
In August 2016, the CMA published its final report following its investigation into the competitiveness of retail banking market (Report), which focused on personal current account and SME customers. The Report found...
PRIIPs delegated regulation regarding product intervention published in OJ
The Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1904 supplementing the PRIIPs Regulation was published in the Official Journal on 29 October 2016. Under the PRIIPs Regulation, national competent authorities and EIOPA have...
FCA publishes final report on corporate and investment banking
The FCA has published the final findings from its thematic review into corporate and investment banking. The study was designed to foster competition in the industry and has concluded that whilst many clients are well...
Treasury consultation on distributable profits of long-term (life) insurers
The Treasury has launched a consultation on technical changes to the legal definition of life insurers’ distributable profits, in the light of the implementation of Solvency II and the necessity for consequent...
Updated Consumer Credit information sheets published by the FCA
On 18 October 2016, the FCA announced that it had updated a number of consumer credit information sheets that lenders must use when they are notifying customers of being arrears or default: Arrears Default High cost...
Removal of ineffective disclosure requirements from FCA Handbook
The FCA’s policy statement PS16/23 follows its consultation paper CP15/32 which contained its proposals to remove certain disclosure requirements from the Handbook. The policy statement confirms the removal of...
Market turning event in the general insurance sector: PRA consultation
The PRA issued a consultation on 21 September 2016 on a draft supervisory statement regarding its expectations of general insurance firms in circumstances where there is a general loss event which might affect...
Big Data in retail general insurance: FCA feedback statement
In November 2015, the FCA published a call for input on ‘Big Data’, ie the use of new or expanded data sets, new technologies to generate, collect and store data, and sophisticated analytical techniques...
FCA’s August Consumer Credit update
This month’s consumer credit update from FCA includes its publications in two on-going areas of work: crowdfunding and credit cards. The FCA has published a Call for Input for its review of the crowdfunding rules...
General insurance: new disclosure rules from 1 April 2017
On 10 August FCA published Policy Statement PS16/21: ‘Increasing transparency and engagement at renewal in general insurance markets – feedback on CP15/41 and final rules and guidance’. The policy statement...