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FCA

Policy and Campaigns – Progress Update 04 April 2022

Policy and Campaigns – Progress Update 4 April 2022 Since our last update in November 2021 (see page 16 here), we have worked on: 1. Consultation responses and government lobbying 2. Woodford Campaign 3. Voting Guidance and Shareholder Engagement 4. Shareholder Rights/Nominees 5. SVS/ITI 6. FCA liaison 7. FRC, BEIS, etc liaison 8. Campaigns 9. AIM regulation 1. Consultation responses and government lobbying. This continues to be a major area of work, where ShareSoc represents the interests of individual investors. We have submitted responses to: • FRC Endorsement Board – Draft Endorsement Criteria ...

ShareSoc response to FRC Endorsement Board – Draft Endorsement Criteria Assessment: IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts

In a joint UKSA/ShareSoc response on 4 Feb 2022, we said we do not agree with your overall tentative conclusion that IFRS 17 meets the criteria of understandability, relevance, reliability and comparability required of the financial information needed for making economic decisions and assessing the stewardship of management. The consultation paper can be read here: https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com/99102f2b-dbd8-0186-f681-303b06237bb2/2994263f-e03c-45d4-9fcd-933f0b19cb56/UKEB%20IFRS%2017%20DECA.pdf Our full response can be read here UKEB-Invitation-to-Comment-IFRS-17-ECA-UKSA-ShareSoc-response by Cliff Weight, Policy Director, ShareSoc 

ShareSoc response to FCA Consultation CP21/36: A New Consumer Duty

In a detailed 12 page response to the FCA Consultation, ShareSoc made the following key points: We welcome consultation paper CP21/36 and its proposed new Consumer Duty, which we believe will set clearer and higher standards. We believe that the proposal should be labelled as a Duty of Care. We do not understand why the FCA has not done this. We also believe it is not clear whether the FCA’s central proposal is intended to create a duty of care. We ...

Discrimination Against High Net Worth Individuals?

The views expressed in this article are those of its author and not necessarily those of ShareSoc The cost of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme has been increasing substantially in recent years, as more mis-selling scandals have proliferated and firms have gone bust. This has led to complaints from those firms who fund the scheme and has led the FCA to undertake a “Compensation Framework Review”. This includes looking at possible changes to the scope of protection such as limiting it to “mainstream” ...

Policy and Campaigns – Progress Update 20 Dec 2021

Since Oct 12 (see previous update here), we have worked on: Audit and Governance reform: many members have told us of their concerns about the disasters at Carillion and many others. We view the audit and governance reforms as crucial and have pressed for these to be moved forward as quickly as possible. We are concerned about lobbying to slow down this progress and co-signed a letter to the FT which was published on 12 Nov. 21. Woodford Campaign: ...

Bulb Collapse, Telecom Plus Results and FCA Globo Action

Yesterday energy supplier Bulb collapsed and was put into Special Administration. Bulb has 1.7 million customers and is the largest of 20 alternative energy suppliers to go bust recently. Most of their customers have been taken on by other suppliers but apparently nobody was willing to take on Bulb’s so effectively the company has been nationalised. These companies have all been hit by the rapid rise in gas prices while the price cap imposed by Ofgem meant they could not raise their ...

FCA AGM questions – Response to ShareSoc question on financial education

Asking a question at an AGM is often a good way to get access to the Board and force them to engage on a key issue.  This approach worked well with the FCA, where I submitted three questions and one of which, on financial education, was answered in the live part of the meeting. Page 18 of the written record of the meeting records that I asked FCA Chair Charles Randell: Will the FCA support greater financial education in schools and in the wider world, ...

Policy and Campaigns – Progress Update to 12 October 2021

Since June 14 (see https://www.sharesoc.org/sharesoc-news/policy-and-campaigns-progress-update-14-june-2021/  for previous update), ShareSoc's Policy and Campaigns' team have worked on:   Woodford Campaign: Leigh Day have submitted their claim. They now have 11,000 claimants and another 3,000 registered, but yet to sign their Leigh Day agreement. We held a very successful webinar on 30 Sept with 942 registrants. ShareSoc’s Woodford Campaign now has over 1,500 members, which enables us to lobby strongly for regulatory change and to hold to account those who have done wrong.  ...

Closet Indexing – Update

This is a personal blog by ShareSoc Director Cliff Weight and does not necessarily represent the views of ShareSoc. I have been concerned about Closet Indexing for some time. As have many others, eg https://www.sharesoc.org/blog/general-news/closet-index-trackers-are-you-paying-over-the-odds/ https://www.sharesoc.org/blog/general-news/closet-index-trackers-investigations-in-progress/ https://www.sharesoc.org/blog/collective-investments/closet-indexing/ I met with executives from the FCA on 26 July to discuss our concerns. I have also had several conversations with David Rankin from Punter Southall. The latest news is that Harcus Parker have now starting gathering claimants for a class action against Scottish Widows. They have said- Harcus Parker ...

Redcentric Shareholders to Get Their Day in Court

This article represents the views of its author, not necessarily those of ShareSoc. Four years after defects in the published accounts of Redcentric plc (RCN) came to light, a trial of those accused of false accounting and other offences is finally to take place. Law360 reports: ...Fraser Fisher, former chief executive of Redcentric PLC, and the company's ex-chief financial officer, Timothy Coleman, denied charges that they had falsified financial documents and lied to an auditor between 2015 and 2016 when they appeared at ...

ShareSoc Woodford Legal Claim Webinar

Former ShareSoc Chair Roger Lawson attended the Woodford Webinar and gives his view below. I watched the ShareSoc webinar last night covering the legal claims over the collapse of the Woodford Equity Income Fund (WEIF). I never personally held any of the Woodford funds but from past experience of other similar big legal claims it was of some interest. With as many as 270,000 investors in WEIF affected it must be one of the most discreditable events in the financial world in ...

Mail on Sunday, 02 October 2021, Private investors shut out as Oxford Nanopore soars on float

ShareSoc's Cliff Weight says that it's 'disgraceful' that investors are being shut out of successful IPO's.  Click here to read the article.