In a speech this afternoon at the ABI Biennial Conference, and marking 100 days of the FCA, Wheatley will call the regulator a “very different animal to the FSA” with its new “competition duty” the single most significant change in its objectives.
“It means that we don’t just wait for problems before we try to promote competition in the markets we regulate,” he will say.
“We’re not just asking: Is this product compliant? Does it tick every legal box? But actually: is the outcome good? Is the market competitive? And is fair treatment of consumers designed into products and culture?”
He will add that a market that works well for consumers and for firms will be of benefit to everyone and to the UK economy.
“We want consumers to be in a position to drive healthy competitive markets so that they become the new normal,” he will say.
“And where firms can profit from putting consumer first and whether they can’t, they exit the market without disrupting its integrity.”
In its latter days, the FSA was often attacked by critics who disliked what they saw as a move towards a strict rules-based approach, though Wheatley will stress that good regulation is not a “zero-sum game.”
His speech reads: “This is not a case of one side having to win and the other having to lose. We each have a vested interest in making markets work well for all participants.
“Regulators need to serve the market better by acting more swiftly. By intervening earlier and more intelligently to avoid crises down the line. That process of repair is now underway. Our first 100 days are a marker of what lies ahead.”
Earlier this month, ESMA found that the sale of ‘complex’ products to retail investors has surged in the past five years despite relatively low returns.
