As recently as January, it had looked fairly inevitable that IFAs would fall off the register, despite industry support for the move. It’s resurrection is likely the result of political murmuring at the time.
In its proposal, released Wednesday, the regulator said the directory will include all those who hold senior manager positions requiring FCA approval and those whose roles require firms to certify that they are fit and proper.
This includes those in consumer-facing roles, such as mortgage and investment advisers.
Based on consumer feedback, the directory includes more information about individuals working in financial services than is currently available and is “in one, user-friendly place”.
Regime extension
The FCA also published the near final rules on the extension of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR) to almost all regulated firms.
The senior managers regime is a shift in focus from solely on firms to both firms and individuals, and their conduct and competence.
Firms can now access the guides to the SMCR to understand what steps they need to take to prepare for its implementation.
“Introducing the directory will make it easier for people to be confident they can find the right people to deal with,” Jonathan Davidson, executive director of supervision (retail and authorisations) at the FCA, said.
“Today’s publications are all about making sure that consumers can interact confidently with financial services professionals by setting clear standards for the behaviour of those individuals and making available information about their fitness and propriety.
“The senior managers and certification regime sets clear standards for the conduct that consumers and regulators expect from all financial services staff. These standards of behaviour are central to the FCA’s priority of promoting healthy cultures in firms.”
