William Mason, Guernsey Financial Services Commission’s director general, is reported by the Guernsey Press as saying that it was an important move which would encourage anonymous information which could be investigated or used to support other inquiries.
He added that this will “provide us with a useful source of intelligence about poor practice in firms. This is not necessarily criminal activity, it could be more misconduct. People are already contacting us from within firms from time to time, but we hope this will tell us more, and provide a more structured way of getting the information through.”
The GFAS yesterday also issued a consultation paper on relating to the future implementation of new Guernsey financial advice standards for those providing investment advice to retail clients in the investment and insurance sectors.
Carl Rosumek, the commission’s director of investment supervision and policy division said the implementation of GFAS is intended to “increase professional standards, make adviser charging more transparent and reduce potential conflicts of interest.”
One of the key proposed changes will be the requirement for relevant authorised insurance representatives (AIRs) and investment advisers, who are advising retail clients,to obtain a FCA level 4 qualification within a specified timescale.
A feedback statement will be issued by the commission following the close of the consultation period on Friday 8 November 2013.
