The first Workshops, held in Rickmansworth, Herts, on 7th and 13th May 2003, were well attended and formed the first phase of a wider regulatory support programme planned for intermediaries. Other follow-on Workshops are already being organised for later on in the year to offer support around the practical challenges of regulation - dates have yet to be confirmed.
The first two Workshops were structured to provide a very practical overview of authorisation requirements, timing, cost, strategic impact and compliance strategies.
Key-note presentations were provided by members of the FSA’s High Street Firms Division Authorisations team together with senior igroup representatives including, Jonathan Sadler (Director of Sales & Marketing), Simon Deane-Johns (Legal & Compliance Director) and members of the lender’s Compliance team.
Speaking about the support programme, Simon Deane-Johns said, “As the FSA consultation period reaches its conclusion, it’s time for us and our intermediaries to start looking at the practical aspects of regulatory change rather than just the theory. With this in mind, our programme will offer realistic and practical support relating to the FSA’s general prudential regulation, as well as the mortgage and general insurance sourcebooks.
“As a significant lender in our sector, we are dedicated to supporting our business partners in ways that may not directly relate to our products. So we have tailored this programme to include assistance on how our introducers can obtain their own authorisation, the strategic impact of prudential requirements - as well as those relating to mortgage and general insurance - along with some initiatives that will reduce cost and save time along the way. We are also working to ensure that our introducers will benefit from our resources and know-how combined with that of other GE Consumer Finance and insurance businesses in the UK”.
