21st August 2015

RDR learnings

At the beginning of August, the ‘You could not make it up” season got well underway with HM Treasury and the FCA launching a review to examine how to plug the advice gap (their own regulatory actions had caused). Well, they missed that last bit out in the announcement.

Anyway, a week or so later we learn that US regulators are/were in discussion with the FCA with a view to learning from the UK’s experience of implementing the RDR reforms.

It would also seem that in 2010, the FSA and FINRA (who regulate US brokers remunerated by commission) entered into a memorandum of understanding to support more robust co-operation between the two regulators.

Really? I am not sure what the reverse of that statement around “America sneezes and the UK gets the flu” is?

But if ever there was a better example of messed up regulatory thinking and political miss-management around the “learnings” part, the lead up to RDR in the UK and the resulting advice gap we have today, this is it.

We hope that America listens and learns where our regulators did not.

Here is an adviser "must read" for 2015, we highlighted the well warned of failures that RDR would produce over 5 years ago. 

May I rewind you to the 19th July 2010 for a ‘told you so’ history lesson on the route map to statements emerging last week surrounding the success of RDR.

And the US regulator is asking the FSA to share learnings? How can anyone learn if the knowledge giver does not listen?

My observations in 2010, parodying the late, great satirist Peter Cook, in ‘Derek and Clive’ conversational style with Hector Sants, Martin Wheatley or George Osbourn on the subject still stands " is this any way to run a ******* ballroom?

Regulation, RDR, Panacea Comment