MyComplianceOffice Blog

Firms are required to renew the FINRA and state/jurisdiction registrations of their registered reps every year, and the deadlines are coming up fast. Now’s the time to make sure that you have the right framework in place to manage your renewals on time, cost effectively, and efficiently—this year and moving forward.

MAS enforcement actions between January 2022 and June 2023 include 136 cases opened, 39 criminal convictions, and SGD$20.8m in financial penalties. These figures show significant increases in enforcement actions over the previous 18-month reporting period (1 Jul 2020 - 21 Dec 2021).

It's been just over three months since the 31 July Consumer Duty deadline. Just what does that mean for firms? 

In a recent speech, Nisha Arora, FCA Director of Cross Cutting Policy and Strategy, reminds firms that Consumer Duty is not a one and done endeavor.  According to Arora, Consumer Duty isn't just a check the box exercise. Consumer Duty should create an enduring shift in culture across the organisation. This means firms should be assessing, testing, understanding and evidencing outcomes on an ongoing basis. 

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has finalised its revision of competency requirements for representatives conducting regulated activities under the Financial Advisers Act 2001 (FAA) and the Securities and Futures Act 2001 (SFA).

MAS has now published its finalised response that addresses questions and feedback given concerning the 2020 Consultation Paper.

Finalised revisions will replace the current FAA Notice and SFA Notice and come into effect on 01 April 2024.

The Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) institutes uniform regulations for crypto-assets across the EU not currently regulated by existing financial services legislation. The first Consultation Package regarding the regulation was published on 12 July and requested feedback on rules for crypto-asset service providers regarding authorisation, identification, management of conflicts of interests, and complaints. The second Consultation Package was published on 5 October and is requesting feedback on sustainability indicators for distributed ledger technology, disclosures of inside information, technical requirements for white papers, trade transparency measures, and record-keeping standards for crypto-asset service providers. Comments are due by 14 December.