Well. No round up of 2022 would be complete without mention of the biggest regulation to hit financial services since MiFID II – that’s right, it’s everyone’s favourite, Consumer Duty! 

In the months leading up (cheating a bit here, as some of our round-ups took place in 2021) to the launch in July this year, at The Verve Group we were casually reminding you that it was coming, what was expected to be in the Final Guidance, and making sure that we would have useful documents and information available for you as soon as possible. Our Consumer Duty page with useful links and info is still available here. 

Our guide to Consumer Duty, explaining all the Principles, rules and outcomes was published a few days after the FCA Final Guidance was released – and still remains one of our most popular downloads ever. Everyone was looking for a simple, no-nonsense look at what exactly the FCA was looking for and we were delighted that our guide was useful to so many. 

We (represented ably by our sister company Apricity) were then on a never-ending conveyor of speaking at various different industry events, spreading the good word of Consumer Duty and answering any and all questions that came our way – even from those that simply look upon it as yet another thing to do that won’t make any difference to the industry! We hope that we changed some hearts and minds on that matter. We also ran a series of our own events, including a GROW and a MASTER – which was so popular we had to run it again… 

After decompressing a tad after all the events and processing the feedback, we realised that the most useful thing we could provide to our clients was a Consumer Duty implementation Support Programme. Everyone at this point in the year (after the initial deadline in October) was now looking to understand the ‘how’ of Consumer Duty, not just the ‘what’ – and that’s where we could help. 

Firms have signed up to our 10-month programme, looking at all aspects of implementation into a business, including discussing PROD, Fair Value Assessments, Consumer Understanding and anything else a firm may have concerns around. The programme takes the firms involved all the way up to (and beyond) the July 2023 deadline, ensuring that they have everything they need to be fully compliant with the regulation going forward. 

Remember, Consumer Duty is for life, not just for Christmas – so changes to processes, procedures and even the culture of your company itself may have to change to be on the right track for the FCA in 2023 and beyond. 

If you want to join the programme, you still can. All details can be found here: https://weareverve.co.uk/services/consumer-duty-support/