Cross-border financial services provider STM Group has said that there will be no further action taken by the Gibraltar regulator following a Deloitte skilled persons review in 2018.
The firm said, in a trading update on 6 August, that its operation in Gibraltar had reached an agreement with the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC).
“All actions and remediation have been completed to the satisfaction of the GFSC, the companies’ status as regulated firms remain unchanged and no further action is contemplated,” the firm added.
Historical tax issues
Deloitte’s skilled person’s review looked at the compliance and governance of the cross-border financial services provider, particularly the way in which STM dealt with financial advisers and their clients.
The group came under fire at the end of 2017 when its chief executive, Alan Kentish, and a Gibraltar-based colleague were arrested in relation to tax issues dating back to 2015.
At the beginning of 2018, STM moved its headquarters from Gibraltar to London, and earlier this month the Gibraltar Police investigation was closed with no charges made against either Kentish or his colleague.
Deloitte’s review of STM’s Gibraltar business was completed in 2018 and the group said it have implemented the recommendations the professional services group made in its report.
Trading update
STM Group also said in the trading update that “new business pipeline remains healthy”, this is despite “conversion timelines on flexible annuity and bulk transfers of work-place pensions remain slower than previously anticipated”.
The firm said that this was due to the impact of the covid-19 pandemic.
It also said that new business revenues for our Qrops and Sipps for the expatriate market “remain steady and as expected”.
During the first half of the year, STM Group launched its UK brand, “Options, for your tomorrow”, and this was followed with the launch of its Shariah compliant Sipp and the more recent Shariah compliant workplace pension solution.
