The FCA’s Consumer Duty represents what the UK regulator terms a “paradigm shift” in its expectations of firms. The Duty introduces a new Consumer Principle, which requires firms conducting regulated activities in the UK “to act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers”. It is relevant to all firms (including those in Gibraltar) who distribute or manufacture products and/or services to retail customers in the UK.

The wide-ranging rules require firms to put consumers at the heart of their business, and so impacts product development, communications and end-to-end customer journey, governance, MI and reporting, pricing, distribution, servicing and staff training

Bookings - Click here

Firms are expected to implement the Duty by July 2023 for open products, and by July 2024 for closed products. Additionally, by 30 April 2023 manufacturers should have completed all their reviews, so that they can share information with distributors who will need to meet their own obligations under the Duty.

PwC experts representing banking, investment management and insurance will be delivering a training session on the Duty. PwC has been working with clients across sectors interpreting and implementing the Duty, and so will be in a good position to share an overview of the Duty, likely challenges and practical suggestions on implementation. There will also be ample opportunity to ask questions.

Julian Sacarello, Head of Policy at the GFSC, will speak about the planned legislative approach in Gibraltar to replicate the FCA’s regime and the likely implementation timelines.

Bios

Ian Ody

I am a financial services professional with over 30 years experience gained across front, back and mid-office processes. I have considerable experience in regulated compliance and risk management within the wealth and banking sectors.

I lead the Banking and Capital Markets Team’s Consumer Duty response and have specific experience implementing quality assurance programmes and policy development on remediation and business-as-usual projects. I also have a number of financial services qualifications in all aspects of financial advice, including taxation & trusts, equity release, long term care, mortgages and pension transfers.

Prior to joining PwC, I gained experience in financial planning, investment management and risk and compliance.

Nick Hawk

Nick is an experienced Senior Manager in PwC’s Asset & Wealth Management Risk & Regulation practice with over 12 years experience in the industry.

Nick has been working recently with a number of UK asset managers, wealth managers, and platform businesses on elements of their Consumer Duty programmes. Nick has particular expertise in help clients with designing an approach for delivering on the product and services, and the price and value outcomes.

Nick has previously led multiple projects assisting firms with implementing the FCA’s assessment of value requirement, many elements of which now map to the new Consumer Duty.

Sarah Watson

Sarah is a Senior Manager in our Insurance and Asset Wealth Management Regulation practice. She brings with her 15 years' of experience in major financial institutions, including the Bank of England and Goldman Sachs. She offers a powerful combination of analytical, communication, and stakeholder management skills.

Sarah has significant supervisory experience having worked for 4+ years at the PRA within the Bank of England where she supervised major life groups insurers and retail life insurers. Sarah has also worked for a decade in Goldman Sachs in their Equity Research division analysing investment opportunities and equity market trends for clients such as asset managers, hedge funds, and pension companies.

Sarah has driven PwC’s Consumer Duty for Insurers offering for the last 8 months.

Sania Hussain

Sania is a Manager in PwC’s Financial Services Regulatory Insights team. Sania has over 10 years of experience at the FCA, where she most recently supervised some of the UK’s largest personal lines insurers and intermediaries. As conduct supervisor, Sania engaged and challenged firms with respect to their culture, governance, and systems and controls.

Sania’s role at PwC involves authoring PwC’s market facing publications on insurance and conduct regulatory developments, and advising clients on the impact of new regulations. Sania continues to engage with insurers on fair value and the incoming Consumer Duty, with respect to interpreting the new requirements, the regulator’s focus, and how key challenges can be overcome.

Samantha Jones

Sam is a Director within PwCs UK Insurance Regulatory Team. She has over 16 years of experience in insurance regulation, having worked at the FSA, in a law firm, in an insurance firm and consulting. Sam is a former lawyer and has worked across all areas of insurance including life and pensions, general insurance and London Market with both manufacturers and distributors.

Sam spends her time supporting insurers and distributors manage conduct risk, deal with specific regulatory requirements, prepare and submit regulatory applications such as change in control or authorisations. Sam has extensive experience around regulatory change and insurance products.

In recent times Sam has supported multiple insurers with their consumer duty gap analysis and implementation planning and has had further discussions with many others in the sector on this topic. Sam is leading our insurance consumer duty offering and is well placed to support firms on this significant regulatory change.

Julian Sacarello

Julian is the Head of Policy at the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC), where he has been working for close to 9 years. He has been in the Policy Team throughout that period, where a key focus has been working closely with Government on the development of the financial services legislative framework. This has entailed working on the transposition of various EU Directives pre Brexit, the completion of the Gibraltar Legislative Reform Programme, extensive Brexit related changes and, more recently, supporting Government with the work on the UK’s Gibraltar Authorisation Regime (GAR). Prior to joining the GFSC, Julian worked as a lawyer at Isolas for 5 years.

The GAR work is the main priority for the GFSC Policy Team at the moment. As well as the direct work involved in the establishment of the regime, the GAR work requires working with Government on changes to Gibraltar’s legislative framework in the interim period to ensure it maintains sufficient alignment with the UK’s. Aligning with the FCA’s Consumer Duty is therefore currently one of the Team’s priorities.

Date: 16th March 2023
Time: 11am - 12.30pm
Format: Webinar
Course fee: GBP 35 GACO/GFIA/GANT Members; GBP 50 Non-Members

Bookings - Click here