Where now for whistleblowing?

What makes an arrangement for financial services employees to raise malpractice concerns ‘effective’ or ‘appropriate’; and what is a ‘reasonable measure’ to protect those who report? Ben Henriques considers possible responses to the new whistleblowing rules.

Ben Henriques, an associate at law firm Corker Binning, represents high net-worth individuals and clients embroiled in large-scale fraud cases. He also advises at the investigative stage. Contact him on bh@corkerbinning.com.

Like all rules, those in the Financial Conduct Authority’s new Senior Managers Regime on whistleblowing can be met with multiple responses. Firms will need to take great care in how they are implemented but it should be possible to find a clear path between the rock of FCA enforcement and the hard place of excessively complex internal policies.