Compliance Monitor

Gloom and uncertainty engulf the economic outlook, while initial post-crisis optimism that financial services compliance departments would finally receive the recognition and resources they deserve, has withered. Instead, Compliance must ‘make do and mend’, grappling to stay abreast of the escalating burden of regulation with static, barely increasing or stopgap temporary headcounts. Senior functionaries are stretched so thin that many intend to leave the profession, and they feel ambivalent about the efficacy of heightened regulation and supervisory restructuring. The annual research conducted by Randstad Financial & Professional (formerly Joslin Rowe) and Compliance Monitor is presented below and surveyed 52 compliance professionals in the City – 70% of whom were heads of compliance, with the remainder senior managers.

On 20 October, the European Commission presented its legislative proposals for a package of measures to update the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). Known as MiFID II, they take the form of a revised version of the current MiFID Directive and a separate regulation (MiFIR). Emma Radmore looks at the drivers for change and the key provisions.

The FSA is now a presence on the boards of systemically important authorised firms. But, Tom Custance and Deepak Arora ask, is this helpful hands-on supervision or regulatory over-intrusion?

The last month has seen two guidance consultation papers from the FSA on how to build payment protection and structured products, amid concern at the regulator that recent problems have not led to sufficient improvements. Adam Samuel deconstructs the product design and distribution process.

Record market abuse fine for "enhancement job" And the biggest-ever fine by the FSA for an individual goes to… Dubai-based private investor Rameshkumar Goenka, who was sanctioned over £6 million for manipulating the closing price of..

The FSA is itching to intervene earlier in the product lifecycle, however it may be moving ahead of the mandate from Europe. Jacqui Hatfield reviews the twists and turns of UK product regulation and discusses current dilemmas.

Recent years have seen a dramatic rise in the popularity of cloud-based computing services. Although cloud computing is not a new concept, its adoption by IT giants such as Microsoft, Amazon and Google has resulted in a wave of such services being introduced to the market. But, despite claims of cost savings, speed of response and reliability, chief technology officers working in financial services firms have generally resisted adopting cloud computing – in part due to the heavy regulatory burden to which systems in the industry are subject. Dan Burge and Anna Doherty explore how FSA rules may impact on the development of cloud computing and consider whether problems are being forced underground.

With fast-developing technology, weak sanctions and powers, as well as uneven implementation across Europe enfeebling the Market Abuse Directive (MAD), proposals for an updated directive and a regulation with direct application in member states represent a fresh offensive to create better protected financial markets. Charlotte Hill and Victoria Silver ask if the new measures represent a crackdown or a wind-up?