Fortnightly bulletin 24th january 2017

WMA Bulletin 24th January 2017 WMA Bulletin is a fortnightly snapshot delivering the latest news and current affairs from within the wealth management industry and WMA.

What's going on in our industry?

Brexit - PM's Speech and Supreme Court Ruling Following the recent announcements around Brexit the WMA has issued two press releases that can be read here. They outline WMA's continued commitment to working with the government to ensure our member firms remain able to offer the best possible financial services to their investors.

The Supreme Court’s ruling that the triggering of Article 50 will be subject to a vote from Parliament is just the latest announcement in the ongoing Brexit story.

Prime Minister Theresa May recently unveiled further details of the government’s planned roadmap to Brexit, including its desire to secure a structured transition deal as the UK builds a ‘constructive partnership’ with our European neighbours. May noted the government’s preference for a “phased process of implementation” for key industries, essential to avoid a cliff-edge scenario for the financial services sector, although she warned against an "unlimited transitional status" scenario, noting that "no deal" would be better than a "bad deal" for the UK. The WMA’s CEO Liz Field welcomed the comments, adding that “ensuring a predictable, orderly transition will be crucial for the sector”.

Industry Consultation Paper: Asset Transfers and Re-registrations This is a reminder that firms are encouraged to read and respond to the industry consultation paper on improving pension and investment transfers and re-registrations. The deadline for responses is 31st January 2017. Those firms who prefer responding via WMA can do so to Andy Thompson.

IRSG Report Yesterday saw the launch of the latest report from the International Regulatory Strategy Group (IRSG ). The report titled ‘The EU’s third country regimes and alternatives to passporting’, offers a detailed analysis of the EUs current third country regimes (TCRs) and equivalence provisions as a whole of industry solution for cross-border access to EU markets postBrexit, showing that they are not sufficiently robust and are unsustainable. It also underlines how existing alternatives to passporting and TCRs are either limited or significantly less efficient than current arrangements.

The report concludes that the focus of the Brexit negotiations should be on designing and delivering a bespoke UK-EU deal rather than reforming or adapting existing frameworks. This bespoke deal should be based on mutual recognition and regulatory cooperation and allow for mutual market access, delivering the same or comparable levels of access rights to those currently available.

The WMA is an active part of the IRSG, and has been a key contributor on the ongoing Brexit work.

The above report can be read here.

What is WMA up to?

FSCS Annual Plan & Budget Event The WMA attended the FSCS Annual Plan & Budget Event where the FSCS provided a presentation on the key issues.

New WMA Member We are delighted to welcome management consultants Synpulse UK Ltd to the WMA Membership.

Ongoing MiFID Work WMA continue to meet with the FCA on MIFID II we have recently had meetings on transaction reporting and costs and charges.

Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs) On 17th January, WMA met with the EIOPA policy staff responsible for drafting the Level 3 Q&A that will provide guidance on issues arising from the PRIIPs Regulation and the yet-to-be finalised RTS. As well as covering issues of scope and definition, we also raised a number of queries focusing on the distribution of PRIIPs, specifically the practicalities of providing KIDs within the context of different business models. With regards to timing, the latest indications are that a package will be published in April/May consisting of the final RTS text, European Commission guidance on various scope issues and the first tranche of EIOPA Q&A.

WMA Retail Markets Committee The Committee received an update on WMA’s current workstreams in relation to MiFID II, discussed the obligation to offer clients the choice of segregated or omnibus accounts under Article 38(5) of the CSD Regulation, and also the proposals relating to shareholder information and voting rights in the Government’s Green paper on Corporate Governance Reform (see December 2016 WMA Update for further details). The Committee was also encouraged to respond to the cross-industry consultation on pension and investment transfers and re-registrations.

New WMA Member Corporate Governance Reform WMA met with the lead official at the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy responsible for the Green Paper on Corporate Governance Reform which includes a section on ways to facilitate or encourage retail shareholders to exercise their rights to vote on pay and other corporate decisions. Discussion focused on potential options to allow individual investors to vote and receive “pass back” information, including amendment to the Companies Act 2006 and a Code of Good Practice.

What's coming up in our industry?

European Retail Financial Services Forum The WMA, as a founder member, will be participating in, and speaking at, the next workshop of the European Retail Financial Services Forum (“ERFF�) to be held at the European Parliament on 9th February. The ERFF looks to bring product providers and users together, and is currently majoring on the digital agenda, with the workshop focussing on Fintech.

Markets Group The Private Wealth UK Forum Markets Group is running a meeting in London on March 21st that will bring together more than 100 allocators of high-net-worth capital from the UK, including leading private banks, wealth managers and family offices.

This a one-day networking and peer education platform that will provide an overview of both asset allocation and asset protection strategies for the private client intermediary and end user. The program covers asset allocation, trust and estate planning, family governance, risk management and alternative asset classes, to name a few.

If you would like an invitation to the Forum, please email Karishna Perez or call +1 646216-8581 to discuss ways you and your firm can get involved in

Click here to request the agenda.

the program.

What's coming up in WMA? WMA MiFID II Conference Tuesday 28th February The WMA MIFID II Conference will be a full day event focusing on the current state of play of MIFID II and will identify actions firms can be taking now.

Spaces are limited so book today to avoid disappointment.

CDP Seminars: Operation Tax – February 2017 – London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester and Liverpool The first reports under the OECD’s Common Reporting Standard (CRS) will need to be sent to HMRC by the end of May 2017. To help firms prepare and to flag the key differences between the CRS and US FATCA we are delighted that Elinor Crockford, Policy Advisor in the Exchange of Information team at HMRC, has agreed to speak at a number of WMA seminars across the UK. As well as a short introduction Elinor will join a panel which will include one or two advisory firms to give WMA members an opportunity to ask questions on CRS-related issues.

The US tax authorities are also shortly to finalise the new Qualified Intermediary (QI) Agreement so the second half of the seminars will provide a summary of the key impacts of the new QI Agreement on wealth managers.

Book your seat today

Women in Wealth Thursday 9th March The WMA ‘Women in Wealth’ series of events will gather women from across the industry for peer-to-peer networking and inspiration.

The events are designed to provide a platform for candid discussion and access to the UK's top wealth management professionals. Keynote speaker for this event is Helen Watson, CEO of Rothschild Private Bank.

Book your place here

WMA Investment Conference Thursday 27th April The conference will provide delegates with the opportunity to hear form some of the industry’s top economists, as well as presentations covering range of topics. Furthermore, it will tackle subjects of direct interest and relevance to our member firms’ front office professionals.

Last year’s event was attended by delegates ranging from CEOs to CIOs, portfolio managers to investment strategists, client facing relationship managers to graduate trainees.

This event will be chaired by the FT's wealth correspondent Hugh Greenhalgh.

Speakers will include: 

James Ashley (Goldman Sachs) speaking on themes emerging from WMA's recent Economics Roundtable



Ian Cornwall (WMA) on the effects of new regulatory policy on the front office



MSCI on Indices and Benchmarking



John Barrass (WMA) on the political landscape - impacts and predictions

Register here