More information about the SMCR
The Approved Persons Regime has been replaced with the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR). The SMCR is intended to increase standards of conduct and individual accountability for all of those working within Financial Services and Insurance, while holding senior managers accountable for the firm's conduct.
The SMCR has three elements, the Senior Manager's regime and Certification regime, both of which came online for solo regulated firms in 2019 and thirdly, the Conduct Rules which staff must have been trained on by the end of March 2021. Refresher training should now be undertaken annually and we are quickly approaching that deadline.
There are two sets of Conduct Rules; those for Senior Managers (the Senior Managers Conduct Rules) and the Individual Conduct Rules, which apply to all relevant staff. Staff must understand how these rules apply on a practical level in their day to day role. A breach of these rules can potentially have serious consequences on the individual and their future career. The increased emphasis on individual accountability means it is important for your business to understand what your responsibilities are in terms of training staff and ensuring there are controls in place to quickly detect and mitigate any breaches of Conduct Rules.