PIMFA NEWS BULLETIN | 17 APRIL 2020 Welcome to your new and improved Weekly PIMFA Bulletin! Grab a coffee and take 10 minutes to read the highlights of all this week's key issues affecting the financial services industry.
WE ARE IN THIS TOGETHER Dear Nigel,
We hope you and your loved ones are well and are keeping safe during this challenging time. Due to COVID-19 the physical PIMFA office is closed but all work continues as normal with our staff working remotely and we are continuing to operate on our members behalf and represent your interests.
We are committed to delivering as much information as possible to our members and the weekly PIMFA Bulletin contains the latest news on the impact of the virus and other key
issues from within PIMFA and the industry that affect you and your business. If there is anything we can be of assistance with, please do not hesitate to contact us at enquiries@pimfa.co.uk and we will direct your query to the person best able to help you.
Best wishes The Team at PIMFA
Covid 19
FCA Communications
Industry Adaptability
We are continuing to have our weekly
Please share your stories with us on how
meetings with FCA and are logging all
your firm is adapting to continue delivering
queries we raise with them. If you have
your services and finding ways to help
any issues regarding the impact of the
support the national effort by emailing
Coronavirus on your business or clients,
us. These examples are very helpful
or other intelligence about the impact on
when it comes to showcasing the
the market, platform providers or
profession, the value you add and the
emerging scams, please email Ian
difference you make.
Cornwall. Members can listen to the recent FCA update webinars and read the briefing notes on their dedicated COVID-
PIMFA Podcasts & Webinars
19 web area. The recordings of all our public access Covid 19: Furlough scheme cutoff date extended to 19 March
podcasts and webinars, on topics such as Cyber Resilience in the face of COVID, can be accessed in our learning library. please also look out for our upcoming
HM Treasury have announced that
webinars on wellbeing that will provide
thousands more employees will be able to
practical and insightful tips on how we can
receive support through the Coronavirus
support one another in these difficult times
Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) after the eligibility date was extended to 19 March 2020. Under the scheme announced by
Chancellor Rishi Sunak last month, employers can claim a grant covering 80%
The Financial Action Taskforce
of the wages for a furloughed employee,
(FATF) statement on COVID 19
subject to a cap of £2,500 a month.
The full statement can be read here.
and illicit financing
The FATF has published a statement in response to the COVID 19 pandemic,
Digital Finance
urging firms to remain vigilant to COVID 19 related financial crime risks. It highlighted an increase in financial fraud
On 3 April the European Commission
and exploitation scams targeting innocent
launched a consultation on digital finance:
victims and vulnerable individuals as well
A new digital finance strategy for Europe /
as criminal exploitation of any
FinTech action plan. The coronavirus
weaknesses in firms’ AML/CTF systems
outbreak has shown that consumers and
and controls. You can read the full FATF
businesses are increasingly relying on
statement here.
digital financial services. It has also underlined the importance of innovation in digital financial products. The consultation
COVID-19 Information Web Areas
seeks views on the possible measures needed to further enable innovative digital
We have launched both public and
financial services, while considering
members only web areas that provide the
possible competition issues with BigTech
latest information on COVID-19. For
companies. The consultation is open until
members only, they can visit their web
26 June and it will feed into the
area to access webinar recordings,
Commission's new Digital Finance
meeting notes, latest global response
Strategy, due to be presented later this
tracker, latest health statistics, updates
year. PIMFA will respond to the
from the CBI and much more.
consultation and will seek firms’ input through the usual committee process. Brexit: Negotiations The Consultation is available here. This week the UK and EU Chief International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Negotiators, David Frost and Michel
April 2020 Fiscal Monitor Press
Barnier, have resumed their talks. On 15
Briefing
April, Barnier and Frost discussed how to move the Brexit discussions forward and
"The IMF calls jointly with the World Bank
agreed on three negotiations rounds by
for an immediate standstill for official
video conference. The next one is due to
bilateral creditors for the poorest
take place during the week of 20 April.
countries. A parallel initiative by the
The UK Government is still determined to
private sector would also be welcome. A
leave the transition period as planned, on
health emergency is a call for unity and
31 December this year, no matter what.
solidarity both within countries and among
However, with both the UK and EU
countries.
focusing on the coronavirus crisis, time for the Brexit talks is running out fast. Trade
Authorities all around the world have
experts are divided on whether there
jumped into action. According to fiscal
should be an extension to the transition
monitor estimates, discretionary policy
period. Those against the extension point
actions with direct impact on the budget
out that the transition is unfavourable to
sum up to $3.3 trillion. In addition, loans
the UK as under its terms the country has
and equity injections amount to $1.8
to be a rule taker and is unable to
trillion. And finally, guarantees represent
influence the decisions made by the
$2.7 trillion. The sum is about $8 trillion
EU27. At the same time, supporters of an
which corresponds to 9 and a half percent
extension argue that the two sides are
of world GDP. The bulk of these measures
unlikely to come to an agreement by the
were adopted by G-20 countries whose
end of the year and even if they do so,
actions represent about 90 percent of the
firms will need more time to adapt and
total."
implement new rules.
The full transcript is available here.
For further information, please contact Maja Erceg.
Joint Trade Association letter on Covid 19/SRD II
PIMFA Investment Scams Campaign
A group of international financial trade associations, including The European
As part of our Financial and Mental
Banking Federation (EBF), the
Wellbeing campaign, we have launching
Association for Financial Markets in
an initiative to keep savers safe from
Europe (AFME) & the International
scams. This initiative will provide
Securities Lending Association (ISLA),
consumers with information on how to
amongst others, have written to the EU
spot and avoid scams, as well as
Commission asking them to consider a
warnings about the latest scams that we
delay in the implementation date of the
know about, among a whole host of other
Shareholder Rights Directive II and of the
information. If you are aware of any
IR by twelve months, to 3 September
scams please let us know by contacting
2021, or other equivalent measures
enquiries@pimfa.co.uk.
providing for a synchronous postponement across EEA and EU Member States.
The full letter can be read here.
What's happening in PIMFA
Euroclear Update
At the April PIMFA Operations Committee meeting, Charlie Pugh from Euroclear reported that Euroclear’s CSD application has not been accepted by the Bank of England as yet – there have been delays as the Bank has had to re-allocate resources to respond to issues arising from the Covid-19 pandemic. They are hoping that acceptance will be achieved in the next few months, so that the Bank of England can grant CSD authorisation before the end of this year.
Regarding CSDR settlement penalties, in light of the current situation, SWIFT have asked their national Chairpersons whether the November release should go ahead or not. If they decide to push the date back, then the CSDR settlement penalties live date of 1 February 2021 would also have to move back. Euroclear have decided to postpone their May CSDR software release (introduction of the mandatory Crest GUI and file transfer upgrade) – no new date has been set as yet, but the participant testing is going ahead. This does mean the introduction of the mandatory field Place of Trade field has been delayed. Please note this field is mandatory, but no longer matching. Euroclear are still working towards having their systems ready for CSDR settlement penalties trialling in November 2020.
The migration of Irish Securities Settlement processing from Euroclear UK & Ireland to the
Euroclear Bank is still scheduled to take place over the weekend of 12 March 2021.
LATEST PIMFA PRESS RELEASES PIMFA launches first ever Virtual Festival in June PIMFA welcomes FCA regulatory forbearance in wake of coronavirus outbreak PIMFA announces organisational changes within policy team Tim Fassam joins PIMFA as Director of Government Relations and Policy
EVENTS & LEARNING Due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, it is with regret that we have decided to postpone all events until further notice. Workshops will still be taking place online via Zoom or may be postponed.The decision has not been taken lightly; however, safeguarding the health and wellbeing of our attendees must take precedence.
Webinars and podcasts will be continuing and will be delivering content online in the coming weeks. We will be updating the website regularly and scheduling new dates. If you have any queries, please contact us at events@pimfa.co.uk.
VIRTUAL FEST We are delighted to announce the launch of Virtual Fest; a live, 2 day online learning experience covering topics such as Compliance, Cybersecurity, ESG, Operational Resilience and more. The PIMFA Virtual Fest will take place on 3-4 June so please save the date. Registration opens soon!
3-4 June | 2 Full Days Click here to find out more
EVIDENCING SUITABILITY FOR WEALTH MANAGERS Why are many firms still not meeting the Regulator's expectations?
In this session, we’ll give you an insight into the most common suitability-related problems we come across, and some ideas about how you can evidence high quality advice and portfolio management in your firm.
22 April | 09:30 - 12:30 Click here to find out more
WEBINAR WEDNESDAY Our Webinar Wednesday’s are a live, concise update on the latest issues effecting you and your firm such as the latest on COVID-19, regulatory changes, political developments and operational issues. Registration for next week's webinar Wednesday will be open tomorrow on the events section of the PIMFA website.
LATEST PIMFA CONSULTATION RESPONSE
Following consideration and consultation with our members, PIMFA outline their concerns about open finance - read the full paper here. All PIMFA's consultation papers can be accessed here.
WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR INDUSTRY
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), supported by The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), say fears over the impact of the pandemic on markets and personal finances may make savers more vulnerable to scams or making a decision that could damage their long-term interests.
They are urging savers to take their time and visit the Pensions Advisory Service website for free plain English pensions guidance before making any decisions about their retirement savings. And to go to the ScamSmart website to learn how to protect themselves from pensions scams. This includes people already retired who are thinking again about their options.
The coronavirus outbreak has impacted on all kinds of companies, including those listed on the stock market. As a result, markets have been volatile and are likely to remain so for a while. This can have an impact on pensions, leading to additional worry for savers. It can lead to an increase in scams, as unscrupulous people try to take advantage of the situation.
Throughout this period, TPR, the FCA, MaPS and government departments will be working together to tackle any additional risks arising from the current uncertainty. For more detail, please click here.
FCA data show 6.02m complaints in the second half of 2019
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has today published the complaints figures for regulated firms for the second half (H2) of 2019. The data showed an increase in complaints from 4.29m in the first half (H1) of 2019 to 6.02m in the second half of 2019.
The increase in complaints was mainly driven by a 75% increase in the volume of PPI
complaints received, from 2.12m to 3.71m. PPI complaints made up 62% of all complaints received during this period, continuing to be the most complained about product. This was the highest level of PPI complaints reported to the FCA by firms, aligning with the deadline for submitting claims to firms by the 29 August 2019.
The full release can be found here.
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