The wealth management sector continues to experience significant regulatory change and supervisory scrutiny. Firms must navigate a complex framework of retail investment and MiFID infrastructure regulation and requirements, including MiFID II, MIFIDPRU, Consumer Duty, operational resilience, financial crime, vulnerable customers, suitability and regulatory reporting, whilst responding to evolving FCA expectations on customer outcomes, governance, fair value and product oversight.

Our experience includes:

• Regulatory Advice on FCA Handbook and MiFID:
  • We provide extensive advice on all aspects of the FCA Handbook and MiFID, the various requirements in COBS, including inducements, independent advice, adviser charges, suitability, appropriateness, financial promotions, conflicts of interest, SYSC (SM&CR and remuneration codes) and PRIN / Consumer Duty (fair value arrangements, product governance and target market assessments).
• FCA Supervisory Intervention, Enforcement Investigations and Skilled Persons:
  • We have advised a large number of investment firms on dealing with FCA supervision and regulatory engagement. Whether this is helping respond at an early-stage seeking to de-escalate any FCA concerns, conducting mock interview and FCA prep, through to robustly challenging the FCA and/or helping firms with remediation.
  • We have conducted Skilled Person reviews and are one of very few law firms appointed to the FCA Skilled Persons panel. This makes us uniquely well-placed to advise firms on responding to such requests, as well as helping firms to limit findings and quickly and efficiently implement required remediation.
  • Successfully assisted a number of investment firms and senior managers through FCA enforcement investigations involving suitability, financial promotions, governance failings, conflicts of interest, systems and controls weaknesses and financial crime concerns.
  • For further information, see our separate FCA Supervisory Intervention, FCA Enforcement Investigations and[AO5.1] Skilled Person Review service lines
• Systemic Liability:
  • Significant experience of advising firms on mass complaint scenarios ranging from 20 to 3,000 complaints, as well as large-scale non-complaint scenarios.
  • We provide strategic and liability advice to help firms navigate this difficult issue, including designing mass redress schemes, drafting client communication plans and advising on approach to FCA notification.
  • We have designed and implemented mass complaint processes which include outsourced complaints triage, final responses templates with significant drafting notes and escalation points and implementing quality assurance frameworks.
• Designing Client Propositions, Consumer Duty Compliance, Distribution Arrangements and Client-facing Documentation:
  • We regularly advise on investment service propositions and structures, suitability requirements, independent advice definitions, adviser and platform charges and associated cost and charges disclosures
  • Assisting multiple firms with reviewing and advising on their fair value assessments and target market assessments.
  • Assisted multiple firms on distribution arrangements, including payments between investment firms in ways which comply with the inducement rules.
  • We have reviewed and drafted dozens of retail client facing documentation and client agreements to ensure compliance with COBS, MiFID, Consumer Duty and the Consumer Rights Act.
  • Drafting and negotiating investment management agreements, platform terms, SIPP documentation and outsourcing arrangements.
• MIFIDPRU and Prudential:
  • We have advised a number of consolidators on MIFIDPRU, prudential and structuring requirements including consolidation as an ‘investment firm group’, the need for a UK parent entity and prudential considerations arising from group debt.
  • We advise firms on drafting ICARAs and advise on all individual aspects of assessing own funds and liquid assets threshold requirements, including harms assessments, wind-down planning, stress testing and recovery planning. We have also advised clients on interpretation of K-Factor requirements to their product types and regulated activities, inputting into their MIF regulatory reporting. For more information, see our Prudential [AO6.1]service line. 
• Corporate and Transactions:
  • We have supported purchasers and sellers with all aspects of M&A transactions in the wealth management market, providing full corporate and regulatory support including regulatory due diligence, change in control applications, acquisition strategies and post-transaction integration, hive ups and wind down plans. We provide regulatory support even where DWF are not the corporate lawyers. For more information, see Corporate Support[AO7.1] service
• Personal Pensions and SIPPs
  • Assisting two international custodians with setting up their UK SIPPs, including significant assistance with FCA VOP applications and regulatory business plan, setting up the SIPP scheme including trust deed and rules, appropriate structures and required governance, consumer facing documentation and advising on broader FCA requirements and key areas of FCA concern in the SIPP market.
  • Assisting SIPP providers with implementing treasury functions and cash management including Consumer Duty requirements such as product approval and fair value assessments.
  • Conducting SIPP governance reviews and 'health checks'. For more information, see our SIPP and SSAS service[AO8.1] line.
• Insolvency and Restructuring
  • We provide regulatory support to firms which decide to wind down a business line, subsidiary or business. There are myriad complex requirements which directors and senior managers need to work through.
  • We have acted on multiple Special Administrations and other administrations, working closely with our insolvency team
  • We are well versed with assisting firms that are removing their custody permissions and/or winding down custody business. There are significant CASS complexities and requirements through which we have successfully guided multiple firms.