The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended, provides for the creation of statutory instruments that outline regulated activities. The Regulated Activities Order specifies that the following are regulated activities: Accepting deposits Issuing electronic money Affecting and carrying out contracts of insurance as a principal Dealing in investments as a principal or agent Arranging […]
UK Financial Services Enforcement and Discipline The regulators have wide-ranging powers under financial services legislation to enforce financial services regulations. They may require authorised persons, representatives, and other individuals to provide information, reports, and documents. They require the information to be verified and documents to be authenticated. They may request a minister to appoint accountants, […]
Prudential standards seek to ensure that credit institutions and investment firms have adequate resources following the Capital Adequacy Directive and the Capital Requirements Directive. Investment firms are subject to risk-based requirements set out in the General Prudential Sourcebook and the Prudential Sourcebook for Banks, Building Societies, and Investment Firms. The sourcebook provides guidance on managing […]
The principal regulators in the UK financial services sector are now the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority. The UK Listing Authority approves companies for stock exchange listing. The Financial Conduct Authority is responsible for the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Money Advice Service. Both authorities jointly oversee the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. […]
The FSA and PRA handbooks set out the rules of conduct for credit institutions, insurers, and other financial service providers. They update the former FSA handbooks. The handbooks are organized into blocks in which there are a number of source books. They are available on the FCA’s and Bank of England’s websites respectively. Certain high-level […]
The Consumer Credit Act 1974 and 2006 are UK statutes that regulate consumer credit in Northern Ireland. The legislation is broadly similar to the Consumer Credit Act 1995 in the Republic of Ireland. The Consumer Credit Act replaced the Moneylenders Act, which regulated moneylenders, pawnbrokers, acts regulating pawnbrokers, and the Hire Purchase Act. The Hire […]
Prior to the Financial Services Act 1986, the UK financial services industry was largely self-regulating. The 1986 act, which coincided with the big bang in terms of technology and deregulation, introduced the system of self-regulation within the statutory firms. The firms were authorized by self-regulating organizations covering relevant factors. The 1986 Act dealt with investment activity. […]
The Consumer Credit Acts regulate specific types of consumer credit businesses in the United Kingdom. They necessitate licensing and impose restrictions on advertising. Licensing holds a central position in consumer credit legislation. Certain types of entities may not engage in consumer credit activities without obtaining a licence. Revocation of the licence serves as a sanction […]
Since 2005, an insolvency event may cause a scheme to be assessed for and ultimately enter the Pension Protection Fund. Prior to that date, it may have become eligible for assistance under the Financial Assistance Scheme. Insolvency may cause a full or partial wind-up of the scheme. An insolvency event applies to a wider range […]
The Finance Act 2004, sought to simplify the taxation of pensions and provide increased choice and flexibility. On 6th April 2006, the existing taxation regimes, eight in total, were replaced by a single set of rules applicable to all registered schemes, including defined benefit and contribution schemes, personal pension schemes, and occupational pension schemes. The […]