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William Prasifka, the Financial Services Ombudsman (the
"FSO") recently published his
office's bi-annual review which analyses all complaints
received and findings made by the FSO in the first six months of
2011. Its results show an overall increase in the number of
complaints received and the percentage of findings upheld against
financial services providers has also increased. The majority of
complaints (48%) were specific to the insurance sector. Of the
remaining complaints, 37% related to banking, 13% were in respect
of investment services and 2% related to non-financial services
providers.
Publication of Complaints Records
The FSO has received a number of submissions regarding his
recent proposal to publish the complaints records of individual
financial services providers in future annual reports.
Submissions have been made by the Central Bank, consumers, various
financial institutions and a range of industry bodies including the
Professional Insurance Brokers Association
("PIBA"), the Irish Banking Federation
and the Irish Insurance Federation
("IIF"). The submissions generally
support the proposal, however a number of concerns have been raised
surrounding its implementation.
PIBA have suggested that ten (10) upheld/partially upheld findings
should be set as the threshold to be met before a financial service
provider's complaints records are published, and opposes the
FSO's proposal that financial service providers should be
identified in case reports. PIBA further suggested that an
application fee be imposed to prevent 'have-a-go'
complaints.
The IIF had a number of concerns about the proposal namely that it
creates the potential for generating misunderstanding in the
market, it may subvert the statutory/supervisory role of the
Central Bank through periodic trial by media and could deny
insurers the right to due process under existing legislation and
regulations.
It is as yet unclear how the FSO will address these concerns. All
of the submissions have been published on the FSO's website (
http://www.financialombudsman.ie/)
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The Risk and Regulation Monthly provides a summary of the key International, European and UK regulatory developments and pertinent regulatory activity affecting the Financial Services industry.
Existing funds which no longer invest after July 22, 2013 are not required to comply with the provisions of the KAGB, even if the manager of such funds also manages funds which still make investments.
The purpose of this investment memorandum is to provide an overview of the investment vehicles (i.e. regulated, lightly regulated and unregulated) that Luxembourg offers to (foreign) entrepreneurs and managers.
The FSA has been in discussions with the banks with regard to them providing appropriate redress for affected customers in relation to the mis-selling of payment protection insurance.
The Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled that VAT on investment management fees paid by the trustees of a UK defined benefit pension scheme is irrecoverable under a VAT exemption for special investment contained in two EU Directives.
The draft legislation transposing the European Union’s Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive into Luxembourg law was submitted to the grand duchy’s Chamber of Deputies by finance minister Luc Frieden on August 24.
Directive 2011/61/EU on Alternative Investment Fund Managers comes into force on 22 July 2013, and aims to provide common requirements across all EU States for the management or sale of Alternative Investment Funds by Alternative Investment Fund Managers within the EU.
A summary of the most recent financial regulatory developments.
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