The FSA has maintained such a ubiquitous presence this week that even Ant & Dec would balk at it.
Whether warning about the dangers of ‘phoenix’ firms, praising the standards of insurance comparison websites, cautioning on the sale-and-rent-back sector or bringing forward its assessment of brokers’ performance on meeting its treating customers fairly (TCF) expectations, the regulator has been ever-present during the past seven days.
And on the whole, it has been sensible in its comments, particularly on TCF. Frankly, its deadline of 31 December for brokers to be in a position to demonstrate their compliance would have been pretty redundant without an immediate programme assessing intermediaries’ standards on the initiative. Responsibility now rests with the advisory community to meet the FSA’s expectations.
But should we take this as a sign of things to come; the regulator we can expect to see in the brave post-credit-crunch world?
There can be little doubt the FSA and its tripartite colleagues will seek to take a firmer grip on a financial market that has hitherto enjoyed a certain – and welcome – amount of freedom.
However, the regulator faces a difficult balancing act in not overdoing it. There is a big difference between an authoritative presence – there to oversee activity and keep order – and a big brother looking over the shoulder of every financial practitioner in the land.
Finally, it would be remiss of me not to pay tribute to the outgoing managing editor of Mortgage Solutions, Ben Marquand. After many years’ faithful service in the mortgage market, Ben is off to pastures new, and will be a big loss not only to the magazine but also to the market as a whole. All the best in your future endeavours, Ben. n
