Two arrests made in FSA investigation into unauthorised financial advisors - The Financial Services Authority (FSA) this week took action against two individuals suspected of providing financial advice when not authorised to do so and making misleading statements to investors. More details are available on the FSA website.
By Gordon McMurray (28/11/11) ... more

FSA warns against 'toxic' traded life policy investments - The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has issued guidance to warn that traded life policy investments (TLPIs) are high risk, toxic products that are generally unsuitable for the majority of UK retail investors and should therefore not be promoted to them.

By Gordon McMurray (28/11/11) ... more

FSA RDR Newsletter 3 issued - The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has published the third edition of its Retail Distribution Review (RDR) newsletter. The publication, which appears on a quarterly basis on the FSA's web-site, has the sub-title “Key information from the FSA for your firm”. Issue 3 , dated November 2011, discusses the progress firms have made towards compliance with the RDR rules and briefly updates on recent RDR publications from the FSA. A useful read for all advisory firms. By Gordon McMurray (23/11/11) ... more

FSA fines and bans Compliance Officer - The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined Dr Sandradee Joseph £14,000 for failure to comply with Statement 6 of the FSA's Statements of Principle for Approved Persons. In addition the FSA has issued a partial prohibition order preventing Joseph from performing any significant influence controlled function in relation to any regulated activities carried on by any authorised or exempt persons, or exempt professional firm on the grounds that she is not a fit and proper person. Joseph settled early in the FSA enforcement process, without which the fine would have been £20,000. Joseph was CF10 and CF11 for Dynamic Decisions Capital Management (DDCM), a hedge fund, operating in London and Milan. By Gordon McMurray (23/11/11) ... more

Appointment of new FOS Chairman - The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has today announced the appointment of Sir Nicholas Montagu KCB as the new chairman of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). More details on Sir Nicholas' career to date are available on the FSA website. By Gordon McMurray (23/11/11) ... more