FCA to host series of consumer duty events
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) will host a series of in-person regional events for financial services firms as they prepare for the introduction of the new consumer duty in July.
A newly-announced programme of engagement will take place between 23 February and 15 June 2023. There will be two separate seminars covering the retail investment sector and the mortgage sector.
Each seminar will last for two hours and the registration fee per person per session will be £85 for regulated firms, and £170 for compliance consultants.
“We want to thank firms for the hard work they’re putting into embedding the duty,” said Sheldon Mills (pictured), executive director of consumers and competition at the FCA.
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“We were encouraged to see many examples of good practice in our review of implementation plans and found that many firms are embracing the shift that the consumer duty brings.
“Putting good outcomes for customers at the heart of firms’ strategies and business objectives will build trust and modernise how we regulate financial services.”
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The new consumer duty was first introduced in July 2022 and will be officially implemented in July 2023. It will require all regulated firms to prioritise consumer protection.
The regulator expects that a side effect of the duty will be that it leads to “a simplified and less reactive form of regulator, which will allow firms to innovate and compete more effectively.”
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