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ASIC cancels registration of 374 SMSF auditors

ASIC has canceled the registration of 374 auditors of self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) who failed to lodge their annual statements. ASIC Commissioner Danielle Press said, ‘SMSF auditors play a fundamental role in promoting confidence and instilling trust in the SMSF sector, which holds more than $865 billion in assets in over 600,000 funds. It is...

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FCA reappoints Chair of the Financial Ombudsman Service for a second term

Baroness Zahida Manzoor CBE has been reappointed as Chair of the Financial Ombudsman Service. The reappointment was made by the FCA Board with the approval of the Treasury. Richard Lloyd OBE, Interim Chair of the FCA, said: ‘I congratulate Zahida on her reappointment and I look forward to continuing to work with her. The Financial...

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EU prolongs economic sanctions over Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine

This document is available in non-EU languages: Russian The Council today decided to prolong by six months, until 31 July 2023, the restrictive measures targeting specific sectors of the economy of the Russian Federation. These sanctions, first introduced in 2014 in response to Russia’s actions destabilizing the situation in Ukraine, were significantly expanded since February...

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ESMA publishes data for the quarterly liquidity assessment of bonds

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s financial markets regulator and supervisor, has published its new quarterly liquidity assessment of bonds. Due to a technical error, the data was published earlier than the usual publication date (1 February 2023). This does not have any impact on the application date. The transparency requirements for...

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British Steel pension scheme misleading redress offers

We are aware that 4 firms who are associated with the British Steel Action Group may be engaged in this conduct. We have introduced a redress scheme for former BSPS members who have not complained. Under the scheme firms will have to review the advice they gave and pay redress to those who lost money...

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ESMA issues its first opinion on the draft European Sustainability Reporting Standards

The European Securities and Markets Authority, the EU’s financial markets regulator and supervisor, has issued an opinion on the first set of draft European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS Set 1) developed by the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG). ESMA finds that ESRS Set 1 broadly meets the objective of being conducive to investor protection...

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ESMA and the UK FCA agree MOU on the recognition of UK benchmark administrators in the EU

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s financial markets regulator and supervisor, and the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have agreed on a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) regarding cooperation and the exchange of information with respect to benchmark administrators based in the UK. The MoU concerns benchmark administrators who seek recognition or...

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Consumer warning on pre-paid probate plans

Pre-paid probate plans are unregulated in the UK. We strongly advise that you consider carefully whether these products meet your needs and offer value before buying as there are no regulatory protections in place for you. In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, probate is the legal right to deal with someone’s property, money, and possessions...

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FCA issues statement of objections to 3 money transfer firms

In a statement of objections issued today, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) alleges that Dollar East (International Travel & Money Transfer) Ltd, Hafiz Bros Travel & Money Transfer Limited, and LCC Trans-Sending Limited (including its parent company Small World Financial Services Group Limited) trading as Small World, fixed prices charged to customers in Glasgow for...