Insights

With the end of July deadline for Consumer Duty fast approaching, we thought it would be useful to remind industry participants about the FCA podcasts for the 4 outcomes

Firms has less than two months to implement the Consumer Duty, which comes into force on 31st July.

Four key outcomes that firms need to assess under the Consumer Duty:

– Products & services
– Price & value
– Consumer understanding
– Consumer support

The FCA’s approach to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) involves both cross-cutting measures and category-specific measures, each with a different focus and objective.

Cross-cutting measures are designed to address sustainability challenges that cut across multiple sectors and industries. These measures aim to ensure that sustainability considerations are integrated into investment decisions across different asset classes and investment categories. For example, cross-cutting measures may involve integrating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into investment decision-making, regardless of the specific investment category.

While there has been a significant increase in interest in Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) considerations in the asset management industry, there are still some barriers to widespread adoption of ESG principles. It must be stressed that a key factor in breaking down the barriers to ESG is the continuous evolution of the regulation globally, in terms of both disclosure and risk management. With this in mind, the main barriers include

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) requires for firms to implement operational resilience plans by 31st May 2022. As it stands, we are 1 year into a 3-year implementation period running from 31st March 2022 to 31st March 2025. By May 2023, firms should have made significant progress towards operational resilience and be ready to report where Impact Tolerances are exceeded

In our previous posts on Private Asset Products, we have talked about the characteristics, the demand, and the complexities. Here, we share a few insights as to what to think about when considering a new Private Asset Product launch, whether you are an established manager of such products, or venturing into this brave new world for the first time