This report summarises the results of a survey of 233 firms active in providing financial advice on retail investment products, carried out in November 2015. The results from this survey informed the FAMR, the proposals recommended and are being used to inform the FCA’s ongoing supervisory work in this area.
The survey sample was quiite substantial, representing around 21% of the total number of advised retail investment product sales transactions in the population of relevant firms.
There is a lot of really interesting stuff in the report. For example …
“On average, 42% of the sample firms’ revenue from regulated advice services was from advice on investments; 21% was from advice on pension accumulation; 16% was from advice on retirement income; and the remainder was from other advice areas, such as protection products, mortgages, and general insurance. Of the firms in our sample, 80% had retail investments advice revenue of less than £1m in the most recent year; the largest 20 firms had at least £4m revenue; and the largest 10 firms all had revenues over £20m.”
There is also information on …
- types of business;
- customer segments;
- pot sizes;
- firms’ charging models;
- how firms are dealing with pensions reforms.
FCS Transitional Arrangements
Steve Bailey Compliance Update
As you will be aware the Financial Services Authority ceased to be and the Financial Conduct Authority took over the regulation of financial advice firms on 01 April 2013.
The FSA issued PS13/05 last week which includes updated rules and transition arrangements. The policy statement itself is 88 pages but the ‘appendix (3)’ that accompanies it is a mere 1990 pages so you must excuse us for not as yet absorbing every word. The document can be seen here.