The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries was responding to the FCA consultation on a new directory that will continue to show Appointed Representatives after the Senior Managers & Certification Regime has been extended.
AMI has accused the FCA of working in siloes after the regulator proposed creating a tool for consumers to find advisers – which is already provided by the Money Advice Service.
The Work and Pensions Select Committee asked the Financial Conduct Authority to improve its register, specifically to ensure that consumers could check if a firm or individual has had their permissions restricted or suspended.
The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries was responding to the FCA consultation on a new directory, that will continue to show Appointed Representatives after the Senior Managers & Certification Regime has been extended.
Robert Sinclair (pictured), chief executive of AMI said: “We are concerned that the FCA appears to be working in siloes both internally and distinct from organisations it’s supposed to be collaborating with. There is a risk of a waste of resources.
“AMI perceives that there is a regulatory view that MAS is a third party on par with a commercial firm, whereas MAS is a statutory body funded by industry in the same way as the FCA.
“The memorandum of understanding between MAS and the FCA commits to “minimise inconsistency and duplication and to promote coordination” by “working together on information aimed at consumers”.
“We would have expected the FCA to consider MAS’s existing retirement adviser directory rather than the duplication set out in these proposals.
“The FCA should have also consulted more widely before adding this function to the current register.”
He added: “These proposals directly cut across the Mortgages Market Study work on broker choice published in May 2018, and we are asking the competition team to reconsider their plans given this directory consultation published in July.
“The new directory will show a list of all advisers, including mortgage advisers, and the information that will be displayed addresses most of the issues raised in the market study.
“Firms shouldn’t be asked to pay for two pieces of similar work running side by side.
“Our view is that the new directory should stop at the point of outlining firms’ permissions and any search facility to find an appropriate adviser should sit within the adviser directory held by MAS and its successor.”
