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FCA targets individual managers with roll out of Senior Managers and Certification Regime to all financial services firms

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Jonathan Davidson
Jonathan Davidson

The Financial Conduct Authority has announced plans to increase the regulatory pressure on individuals, and not just institutions, by essentially replacing its current Approved Persons Regime through the extending of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SM&CR) to cover almost all regulated firms.

The City watchdog said the aim of the new regime is “to reduce harm to consumers and strengthen market integrity by making individuals more accountable for their conduct and competence”.

The FCA said the SM&CR aims to:

  • encourage a culture of staff at all levels taking personal responsibility for their actions.

  • make sure firms and staff clearly understand and can demonstrate where responsibility lies.

    • The regulator proposes three parts to the SM&CR:

    1. Five Conduct Rules that will apply to all financial services staff at FCA authorised firms. This simple set of rules means that individuals must act with integrity, act with due care, skill and diligence, be open and cooperative with regulators, pay due regard to customer interests and treat them fairly, and observe proper standards of market conduct.

    2. The responsibilities of Senior Managers will be clearly set out and, should something in their area of responsibility go wrong, they can be personally held to account. The Senior Managers will be approved by the FCA and appear on the FCA Register.

    3. Under the Certification Regime, firms will certify individuals for their fitness, skill and propriety at least once a year, if they are not covered by the Senior Managers Regime but their jobs significantly impact customers or firms.

      4. Jonathan Davidson, executive director of supervision- retail and authorisations at the FCA, said: “Culture and governance in financial services and its impact on consumer outcomes is a priority for the FCA. The extension of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime is key to driving forward culture change in firms.

      “This is about individuals, not just institutions. The new Conduct Rules will ensure that individuals in financial services are held to high standards, and that consumers know what is required of the individuals they deal with. The regime will also ensure that Senior Managers are accountable both for their own actions, and for the actions of staff in the business areas that they lead.”

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