Mike Ayres – Financial Services Sector Specialist
With the stamp of approval that FCA authorisation brings there is many requirements to comply with. These have been designed with the intention of ensuring that consumers using an FCA regulated firm can be confident that they are protected and can trust the company they are dealing with.
Some of the most stringent of the FCA regulations apply where a company is holding its clients’ money. It is imperative that it is separate from the firm’s own money and protected in the event of a failure of the business. This is where CASS and Safeguarding come in.
Client Money Expertise
We work with a number of businesses across the sector that require client money assurance to confirm to the FCA that they have the correct controls and processes in place to protect their client’s money. Whether for:
Insurance brokers requiring reasonable assurance for the money they hold on behalf of their customers as part of the process of setting up their cover;
Asset managers requiring a statutory audit, and that as a result require limited assurance to confirm they are not holding any client money;
Crowdfunders that must obtain reasonable assurance over the transactions that go through their systems; or
Investment businesses with permission to hold client assets which will need to obtain a reasonable assurance report.
We have the experience in dealing with all of these situations as well as understanding when CASS assurance is not required, whilst still ensuring that FCA requirements are met.
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Brighter Thinking Resources
Articles
The following articles consider various elements of the CASS rules:
Industry Links
www.fca.org.uk
www.biba.org.uk
www.insurancetimes.co.uk
www.investmentweek.co.uk