Related provisions for GEN 1.1.2
21 - 40 of 413 items.
(1) Threshold condition 5 (Suitability), requires the firm to satisfy the FSA that it is 'fit and proper' to have Part IV permission having regard to all the circumstances, including its connections with other persons, the range and nature of its proposed (or current) regulated activities and the overall need to be satisfied that its affairs are and will be conducted soundly and prudently (see also PRIN and SYSC).(2) The FSA will also take into consideration anything that could
(1) The emphasis of this threshold condition is on the suitability of the firm itself. The suitability of each person who performs a controlled function will be assessed by the FSA under the approved persons regime (see SUP 10 (Approved persons) and FIT). In certain circumstances, however, the FSA may consider that the firm is not suitable because of doubts over the individual or collective suitability of persons connected with the firm.8(2) When assessing this threshold condition
(1) When determining whether the firm will satisfy and continue to satisfy threshold condition 5, the FSA will have regard to all relevant matters, whether arising in the United Kingdom or elsewhere.(2) Relevant matters include, but are not limited to, whether a firm:(a) conducts, or will conduct, its business with integrity and in compliance with proper standards;(b) has, or will have, a competent and prudent management; and(c) can demonstrate that it conducts, or will conduct,
In determining whether a firm will satisfy, and continue to satisfy, threshold condition 5 in respect of conducting its business with integrity and in compliance with proper standards, the relevant matters, as referred to in COND 2.5.4 G (2), may include but are not limited to whether:(1) the firm has been open and co-operative in all its dealings with the FSA and any other regulatory body (see Principle 11 (Relations with regulators)) and is ready, willing and organised to comply
Under section 148(4) of the Act, the FSA may not give a waiver unless it is satisfied that:(1) compliance by the firm with the rules, or with the rules as unmodified, would be unduly burdensome, or would not achieve the purpose for which the rules were made; and(2) the waiver would not result in undue risk to persons whose interests the rules are intended to protect.
Under section 148(2) of the Act the FSA may give a waiver with the consent of a firm. This power may be used by the FSA in exceptional circumstances where the FSA considers that a waiver should apply to a number of firms (for example, where a rule unmodified may not meet the particular circumstances of a particular category of firm). In such cases the FSA will inform the firms concerned that the waiver is available, either by contacting firms individually or by publishing details
An application for a waiver of an evidential provision will normally be granted only if a breach of the underlying binding rule is actionable under section 150 of the Act. Individual guidance would normally be a more appropriate response (see SUP 9 (Individual Guidance)) if there is no right of action.2
1Under section 300B(2) of the Act, the FSA may, by rules under section 293 (Notification requirements):(1) 1specify descriptions of regulatory provision in relation to which, or circumstances in which, the duty in section 300B(1) does not apply, or(2) 1provide that the duty applies only to specified descriptions of regulatory provision or in specified circumstances.
1Under section 300B(3) of the Act, the FSA may also by rules under section 293: (1) 1make provision as to the form and contents of the notice required, and(2) 1require the UK recognised body to provide such information relating to the proposal as may be specified in the rules or as the FSA may reasonably require.
1The duty in section 300B(1) of the Act does not apply to any of the following:(1) any regulatory provision which is required under EU2 law or any enactment or rule of law in the United Kingdom; or2(2) (a) the specification of the standard terms of any derivative which a UK RIE proposes to admission to trading, or the amendment of the standard terms of any derivative already admitted to trading; or(b) the specification or any amendment of standard terms relating to the provision
1A notice under section 300B(1) of the Act of a proposal to make a regulatory provision must be in writing and state expressly that it is a notice for the purpose of that section. To be effective, a notice must: (1) 1contain full particulars of the proposal to make a regulatory provision which is the subject of that notice; and(2) 1either be accompanied by sufficient supporting information to enable the FSA to assess the purpose and effect of the proposed regulatory provision
(1) 1Under section 313A of the Act, the FSA may for the purpose of protecting:(a) the interests of investors; or (b) the orderly functioning of the financial markets; require a UK RIE to suspend or remove a financial instrument from trading.(2) If the FSA exercises this power, the UK RIE concerned may refer the matter to the Tribunal.
The procedure the FSA will follow if it exercises its power to require a UK RIE to suspend or remove a financial instrument from trading is set out in section 313B of the Act. The FSA's internal arrangements provide for decisions to exercise this power to be taken at an appropriately senior level. If the FSA exercises this power, the UK RIE concerned and the issuer (if any) of the relevant financial instrument may refer the matter to the Tribunal(see EG 2.39)2.2
Section 19 of the Act (The general prohibition) provides that the requirement to be authorised under the Act only applies in relation to regulated activities which are carried on 'in the United Kingdom'. In many cases, it will be quite straightforward to identify where an activity is carried on. But when there is a cross-border element, for example because a borrower is outside the United Kingdom or because some other element of the activity happens outside the United Kingdom,
Even if a person concludes that he is not carrying on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom, he will need to ensure that he does not contravene other provisions of the Act that apply to unauthorised persons. These include the controls on financial promotion (section 21 (Financial promotion) of the Act) (see PERG 8 (Financial promotion and related activities)), and on giving the impression that a person is authorised (section 24 (False claims to be authorised or exempt)).
Section 418 of the Act deals with the carrying on of regulated activities in the United Kingdom. It extends the meaning that 'carry on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom' would ordinarily have by setting out additional cases. The Act states that in these cases a person who is carrying on a regulated activity but would not otherwise be regarded as carrying on the activity in the United Kingdom is, for the purposes of the Act, to be regarded as carrying on the activity in
For the purposes of regulated mortgage activities, sections 418(2), (4), (5), (5A) and (6) are relevant, as follows:(1) Section 418(2) refers to a case where a UK-based person carries on a regulated activity in another EEA State in the exercise of rights under a Single Market Directive. The only Single Market Directive which is relevant to mortgages is the Banking Consolidation Directive.(2) Section 418(4) refers to the case where a UK-based person carries on a regulated activity
The FSA's view of the effect of the Act and Regulated Activities Order in various territorial scenarios is set out in the remainder of this section. In those scenarios:(1) the term "service provider" is used to describe a person carrying on any of the regulated mortgage activities;(2) the term "borrower" refers to a borrower who is an individual and not a trustee; the position of a borrower acting as a trustee is not considered; and(3) it is assumed that the activity is not an
Where a person is carrying on any of the regulated mortgage activities from an establishment maintained by him in the United Kingdom, that person will be 'carrying on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom'. The location and residence of the borrower is irrelevant. That is the practical effect of sections 418(4), (5) and (6) of the Act.
If a service provider is overseas, the question of whether that person is carrying on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom will depend upon:(1) the type of regulated activity being carried on;(2) section 418 of the Act;(3) the residence and location of the borrower;(4) the application of the overseas persons exclusion in article 72(5A) to (5F) of the Regulated Activities Order; and(5) whether the service provider is carrying on an electronic commerce activity.The factors
(1) Threshold condition 4 (Adequate resources), requires the FSA to ensure that a firm has adequate resources in relation to the specific regulated activity or regulated activities which it seeks to carry on, or carries on.(2) In this context, the FSA will interpret the term 'adequate' as meaning sufficient in terms of quantity, quality and availability, and 'resources' as including all financial resources, non-financial resources and means of managing its resources; for example,
Where an overseas recognised body includes in its report made under section 295(1) of the Act (Notification: overseas investment exchanges and overseas clearing houses) a statement in compliance with section 295(2)(a) of the Act that an event has occurred in the period covered by that report which is likely to affect the FSA's assessment of whether it is satisfied as to the requirements set out in section 292(3) (Overseas investment exchanges and overseas clearing houses), it
An overseas recognised body must include in its report submitted in compliance with section 295(1) of the Act:(1) particulars of any changes to: (a) its memorandum and articles of association or any similar or analogous documents; (b) its regulatory provisions; (c) its chairman or president, or chief executive (or equivalent);(2) particulars of any disciplinary action (or any similar or analogous action) taken against it by any supervisory authority in its home territory, whether
An overseas recognised body must include in the first report submitted under section 295(1) of the Act after the recognition order in relation to that overseas recognised body is made: (1) particulars of any events of the kind described in section 295(2) of the Act which occurred; (2) particulars of any change specified in REC 6.7.4 R (1) or disciplinary action specified in REC 6.7.4 R (2) which occurred; and(3) any annual report and accounts which covered a period ending; after
Where an overseas recognised body proposes to change: (1) its address in the United Kingdom for the service of notices or other documents required or authorised to be served on it under the Act; or(2) the address of its head office;it must give notice to the FSA and inform it of the new address at least 14 days before the change is effected.
Section 31 of the Act (Authorised persons) states that an EEA firm is authorised for the purposes of the Act if it qualifies for authorisation under Schedule 3 to the Act (EEA Passport Rights). Under paragraph 12 of Part II of that Schedule, an EEA firm that is an EEA pure reinsurer5qualifies for authorisation without condition. AnEEA firm that is not an EEA pure reinsurer qualifies for authorisation5 if:(1) it is seeking to establish a branch in the United Kingdom in exercise
Under section 31 of the Act, a Treaty firm is authorised for the purposes of the Act if it qualifies for authorisation under Schedule 4 (Treaty Rights), that is:(1) the Treaty firm is seeking to carry on a regulated activity; and(2) the conditions set out in paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 4 to the Act are satisfied.
The effect of paragraph 5(1) and 5(2) of Schedule 4 to the Act is that a Treaty firm which qualifies for authorisation under that Schedule must, at least seven days before it carries on any of the regulated activities covered by its permission, give the FSA written notice of its intention to do so. Failure to do so is a criminal offence under paragraph 6(1) of that Schedule.
(1) A written notice from a Treaty firm under paragraph 5(2) of Schedule 4 to the Act must be: (a) given to a member of, or addressed for the attention of , the Authorisation Department; and(b) delivered to the FSA by one of the methods in (2).(2) The written notice may be delivered by:(a) post to the address in SUP 13A.3.9 G below; or(b) leaving the application at the address in SUP 13A.3.9 G below and obtaining a time-stamped receipt; or(c) hand delivery to a member of the Authorisation
Under Schedule 5 to the Act (Persons concerned in collective investment schemes), a person who for the time being is an operator, trustee or depositary of a scheme which is a recognised scheme under section 264 of the Act is an authorised person. Such a person is referred to in the Handbook as a UCITS qualifier.
A UCITS qualifier has permission under paragraph 2 of Schedule 5 to the Act, to carry on, as far as is appropriate to the capacity in which it acts in relation to the scheme:(1) the regulated activity of establishing, operating or winding up a collective investment scheme; and(2) any activity in connection with, or for the purposes of, the scheme.
When a firm appoints a skilled person to provide a report under section 166 of the Act (Reports by skilled persons), the firm must, in a contract with the skilled person:(1) require and permit the skilled person during and after the course of his appointment:(a) to cooperate with the FSA in the discharge of its functions under the Act in relation to the firm; and(b) to communicate to the FSA information on, or his opinion on, matters of which he has, or had, become aware in
In complying with the contractual duty in SUP 5.5.1 R (1) the FSA expects that a skilled person appointed under section 166 of the Act (Reports by skilled persons) will cooperate with the FSA by, amongst other things, providing information or documentation about the planning and progress of the report and its findings and conclusions, if requested to do so. A firm should therefore ensure that the contract it makes with the skilled person requires and permits the skilled person
Section 166(5) of the Act (Authority's power to require information) imposes a duty on certain persons to give assistance to a skilled person. The persons on whom this duty is imposed are those who are providing, or have at any time provided, services to any person falling within SUP 5.2.1 G. They include suppliers under material outsourcing arrangements.
When considering whether it is satisfied under section 148(6), the FSA is required by section 148(7) of the Act:(1) to take into account whether the waiver relates to a rule contravention of which is actionable under section 150 of the Act (Actions for damages); Schedule 5 identifies such rules;(2) to consider whether its publication would prejudice, to an unreasonable degree, the commercial interests of the firm concerned, or any other member of its immediate group; and(3) to
Waivers can affect the legal rights of third parties, including consumers. In the FSA's view it is important that the fact and effect of such waivers should be transparent. So the fact that a waiver relates to a rule that is actionable under section 150 of the Act (see SUP 8.6.2 G (1)) will tend to argue in favour of publication.
In considering whether commercial interests would be prejudiced to an unreasonable degree (see SUP 8.6.2 G (2)), the FSA will weigh the prejudice to firms' commercial interests against the interests of consumers, markets and other third parties in disclosure. In doing so the FSA will consider factors such as the extent to which publication of the waiver would involve the premature release of proprietary information to commercial rivals, for example relating to a product innovation,
Insurance business transfers are subject to Part VII of the Act and must be approved by the court under section 111. The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Control of Business Transfers)(Requirements on Applicants) Regulations 2001 (SI 2001/3625) also apply. These regulations set out minimum requirements for publicising schemes, notifying certain interested parties directly (subject to the discretion of the court), and giving information to anyone who requests it.
An insurance business transfer scheme is defined in section 105 of the Act and the definition has been extended to transfers from members of Lloyd's to reflect the effect of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Control of Transfers of Business Done at Lloyd's) Order 2001(SI 2001/3626). With certain exclusions (relating to some schemes approved under foreign legislation, some novations of reinsurance or some captive insurers), it includes, in broad terms, any scheme to
Under section 112 of the Act, the court has wide discretion to transfer property and liabilities to the transferee and to make orders in relation to incidental, consequential and supplementary matters. In the opinion of the FSA, the court has the power in such cases and on such terms as may be appropriate, to transfer the benefit of reinsurance contracts protecting the transferred business and to make such amendments to the terms of those contracts as may be necessary to give
Paragraph 9 of Schedule 17 to the Act (The Ombudsman Scheme) requires FOS Ltd to adopt an annual budget which has been approved by the FSA. The annual budget must distinguish between the costs of operating the Compulsory Jurisdiction, the Consumer Credit Jurisdiction4 and the Voluntary Jurisdiction.
Section 234 of the Act (Industry Funding) enables the FSA to require the payment to it or to FOS Ltd, by firms or any class of firm, of specified amounts (or amounts calculated in a specified way) to cover the costs of: (1) the establishment of 1the Financial Ombudsman Service; and (2) its operation in relation to the Compulsory Jurisdiction.
Section 19 of the Act (The general prohibition) provides that the requirement to be authorised under the Act only applies in relation to regulated activities which are carried on 'in the United Kingdom'. In many cases, it will be quite straightforward to identify where an activity is carried on. But, when there is a cross-border element, for example because a customer is outside the United Kingdom or because some other element of the activity happens outside the United Kingdom,
Even if a person concludes that he is not carrying on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom, he will need to ensure that he does not contravene other provisions of the Act that apply to unauthorised persons. These include the controls on financial promotion (section 21 (Financial promotion) of the Act) (see PERG 8 (Financial promotion and related activities)), and on giving the impression that a person is authorised (section 24 (False claims to be authorised or exempt)).
Table Territorial issues relating to overseas insurance intermediaries carrying on insurance mediation activities in or into the United Kingdom
Needs Part IVpermission |
Schedule 3 EEA passport rights available |
Overseas persons exclusion available |
|
Registered EEA-based intermediary with UK branch (registered office or head office in another EEA State) |
No |
Yes |
No |
Registered EEA-based intermediary with no UK branch providing cross-border services |
No |
Yes |
Potentially available [see Note] |
Third country intermediary operating from branch in the UK |
Yes |
No |
No |
Third country intermediary providing services in (or into) the UK |
Yes unless overseas persons exclusion applies |
No |
Potentially available |
This does not, however, affect the firm'sauthorisation under Schedule 3 to the Act (see PERG 5.12.9 G to PERG 5.12.10 G (Passporting)). |
|||
3For EEA-based intermediaries this table assumes that the insurance mediation activities are within the scope of the Insurance Mediation Directive. |
|||
In determining the location of an activity, and hence whether it is carried on in the United Kingdom, various factors need to be taken into account in turn, notably:(1) section 418 of the Act (Carrying on regulated activities in the United Kingdom);(2) the nature of the activity; and(3) the overseas persons exclusion (see PERG 5.12.9 G to PERG 5.12.10 G (Overseas persons)).
Section 418 of the Act extends the meaning that 'carry on regulated activity in the United Kingdom' would normally have by setting out additional cases in which a person who would not otherwise be regarded as carrying on the activity in the United Kingdom is to be regarded as doing so. Each of the following cases thus amounts to carrying on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom:(1) where a UK-based person carries on a regulated activity in another EEA State in the exercise
Article 72 of the Regulated Activities Order (Overseas persons) provides a potential exclusion for persons with no permanent place of business in the United Kingdom from which regulated activities are conducted or offers to conduct regulated activities are made. Where these persons carry on insurance mediation activities in the United Kingdom, they may be able to take advantage of the exclusions in article 72 of the Regulated Activities Order. In general terms, these apply where
In determining whether a firm has complied with any provision in or under the Act such as any Principle or other rule, anything that an appointed representative has done or omitted to do as respects the business for which the firm has accepted responsibility will be treated as having been done or omitted to be done by the firm (section 39(4) of the Act ).
In addition to the requirements as to the business test and the link to the United Kingdom, two other essential elements must be present before a person needs authorisation under the Act. The first is that the investments must come within the scope of the system of regulation under the Act (see PERG 2.6). The second is that the activities, carried on in relation to those specified investments, are regulated under the Act (see PERG 2.7). Both investments and activities are defined
The Regulated Activities Order contains exclusions. Exclusions may exist in relation to both the element of investment and the element of activity. Each should therefore be checked carefully. The exclusions that relate to specified investments are considered in PERG 2.6, together with the outline of the specified investments. The exclusions that relate to activities are considered separately from the outline of activities (see PERG 2.8 and PERG 2.9).
It remains the Government's responsibility to ensure the proper implementation of MiFID2. Certain2persons subject to the requirements of MiFID2 must be brought within the scope of regulation under the Act. A core element of MiFID is the concept of investment firm.2 An investment firm is any person whose regular occupation or2 business is2 the provision of one or more2investment services to third parties or the performance of one or more investment activities on a professional
For persons who are MiFID2investment firms, the activities that must be caught by the Regulated Activities Order are those that are caught by MiFID2. To achieve this result, some of the exclusions in the Order (that will apply to persons who are not caught by MiFID2) have been made unavailable to MiFID2investment firms when they provide or perform investment services and activities. A "MiFID investment firm", for these purposes, includes credit institutions to which MiFID applies
The Insurance Mediation Directive has in part been implemented through various amendments to the Regulated Activities Order. These include article 4(4A) (Specified activities: general) which precludes a person who, for remuneration, takes up or pursues insurance mediation or reinsurance mediation in relation to a risk or commitment situated in an EEA State from making use of certain exclusions. In other cases, some of the exclusions provided in relation to particular regulated
1Section 301A(1) of chapter3 1A of Part XVIII of the Act places an obligation on a person who decides to acquire or increase control (see sections 301D and 301E of the Act) over a UK RIE3to notify the FSA, before making the acquisition3. Furthermore, those persons are required to obtain the FSA's approval before acquiring control 3or increasing the level of control held.33333
SUP 14.6 (Cancelling qualification for authorisation), which sets out how to cancel qualification for authorisation under the Act, also applies to:(1) an incoming Treaty firm that qualifies for authorisation under Schedule 4 to the Act; and(2) a UCITS qualifier that is an authorised person under Schedule 5 to the Act; a UCITS qualifier should, however, refer to COLLG 3.1.11 G6 for full details of applicable rules and guidance.26
(1) Under the Gibraltar Order4 made under section 409 of the Act, a Gibraltar firm is treated as an EEA firm under Schedule 3 to the Act if it is:(a) authorised in Gibraltar under the Insurance Directives; or(b) authorised in Gibraltar under the Banking Consolidation Directive;44(c) authorised in Gibraltar under the Insurance Mediation Directive; or4(d) authorised in Gibraltar under the Investment Services Directive .4(1A) 4Similarly, an EEA firm which:(a) has satisfied the Gibraltar
Under section 169(1)(b) of the Act,
the FSA may
appoint an investigator to investigate any matter at the request of an overseas regulator. The powers of the investigator appointed by the FSA (referred to here as the 'FSA's investigator') include the power to require persons to
attend at a specified time and place and answer questions (the compulsory
interview power).
Where the FSA appoints an investigator in response to a request from an overseas regulator it may, under section 169(7) of the Act,
direct him to permit a representative of that regulator to attend and take
part in any interviews conducted for the purposes of the investigation. The FSA may
only give a direction under section 169(7) if it is satisfied that any information
obtained by an overseas regulator as a result of the interview will
be subject to the safeguards equivalent
Before making a direction under
section 169(7) the FSA will discuss and determine with the overseas
regulator how this statement of policy will
apply to the conduct of the interview, taking into account all the circumstances
of the case. Amongst other matters, the FSA will at this stage determine the extent to which the representative
of the overseas regulator will be able to participate in
the interview. The overseas regulator will be notified of this determination
on the issuing
(1) A firm must notify the FSA of:(a) a significant breach of a rule (which includes a Principle, or a Statement of Principle ; or(b) a breach of any requirement imposed by the Act or by regulations or an order made under the Act by the Treasury (except if the breach is an offence, in which case (c) applies);6(c) the bringing of a prosecution for, or a conviction of, any offence under the Act;(d) a breach of a directly applicable provision in the MiFID Regulation; or6(e) a breach
A firm must notify the FSA immediately if:(1) civil proceedings are brought against the firm and the amount of the claim is significant in relation to the firm's financial resources or its reputation; or(2) any action is brought against the firm under section 71 of the Act (Actions for damages) or section 150 (Actions for damages); or(3) disciplinary measures or sanctions have been imposed on the firm by any statutory or regulatory authority, professional organisation or trade
3SUP 15.3.23 D to SUP 15.3.25 D are given in relation to the exercise of the powers of the Society and of the Council generally, with a view to achieving the objective of enabling the FSAto:(1) comply with its general duty under section 314 of the Act (Authority's general duty);(2) determine whether underwriting agents, or approved persons acting for them or on their behalf, are complying with the requirements imposed on them by or under the Act;(3) enforce the provisions of the
3The Society must inform the FSA if it commences investigations or disciplinary proceedings relating to apparent breaches:(1) of the Act or requirements made under the Act, including the threshold conditions or the Principles or other rules, by an underwriting agent; or(2) of the Statements of Principle by an individual or other person who carries out controlled functions for or on behalf of an underwriting agent.