SMCR - a practical workshop

With SMCR due to start on 9th December for all solo regulated intermediary firms this event will focus on ensuring that you’ve got it right!

The speakers will focus on your plans for implementation (have you identified your Senior Managers and Certified staff correctly and drawn up appropriate Statements of Responsibilities, etc?) and are happy to take questions (ideally submitted in advance) to do with your own firm’s specific issues.

Have you given thought to allocating responsibility for major areas of FCA focus such as pricing, product governance (oversight distribution chain inc ARs and value measures), insurer due diligence, complaints (inc TCF and vulnerable customers), cyber/IT, whistleblowing, HR etc?

An update on key FCA matters will be provided by John King (has just spent 16 years at the FCA in charge of 5,000 GI firms) and Sarah Wallace, a lawyer who specialises in defending prosecutions by bodies such as the FCA who will focus on the people side of enforcement and use examples of previous cases and will emphasise the shift to individuals' accountability.

Feedback from the previous session:

"Very knowledgeable speakers"

"Expert, clarity and engagement were key strengths; Insightful seminar"

"Engaging discussions and presentation style - very informative but explained clearly"

"Very useful output in terms of slides and how to implement SMCR"

"Openness of debate and real life case studies"

By the end of this event delegate will have gained an insight into:

• The New Senior Managers Regime, Certification requirements and Conduct Rules that will apply to all relevant staff – checking that your plans are in line with what is needed
• Current topics of concern to the FCA - culture, pricing, customers' best interests, value measures and due diligence and how these should be allocated across the Statements of Responsibilities
• Current enforcement issues highlighting the increased focus on individual accountability

This session will include presentations from:

Branko Bjelobaba will take delegates through the Senior Managers and Certification Regime that becomes law on 9 December 2019 and will outline what firms will need to do. He will highlight what needs to happen with Statements of Responsibility and who could become Certified and how the Conduct Rules will apply to all staff. He will also explain how all this will happen and what action firms will need to take in readiness for the new regime.

John King who has spent the last 16 years at the FCA/FSA. John will speak about the FCA's mission, the harm in financial services and that underlying everything, firms should have customers' interests at the heart of their business. He will relate this to the current issues of interest and what firms should be doing about them. This will include culture, which is a key driver in firm's behaviour, differential pricing, whereby existing customers are charged more than new customers, the requirement under the Insurance Distribution Directive to act in the customers' best interests, the proposed value measures as an indicator of poor value products, due diligence on insurers and whistleblowing plus any relevant items from the FCA Business Plan for 2019/20.

Sarah Wallace has wide experience in defending large and complex criminal or regulatory investigations or prosecutions by bodies such as the FCA, SFO and HMRC. FCA Enforcement Update. Sarah will cover topical issues such as: The 'diagnostic approach, current enforcement caseload, recent tribunal and Regulatory Decisions Committee decisions, the new settlement regime for liability and penalties and protecting a firm's reputation under investigation.

In addition to the three presentations there will be an extended group Q&A session that will take questions on the three topics presented plus anything else troubling you to do with FCA.

Session Rates:

• CII/PFS member: £250 + VAT
• Non-members: £350 + VAT

Speaker Bios:

Please contact info@branko.org.uk (0800 619 6619) with any queries and to submit your questions in advance of the event.