Service Overview

The importance of good governance cannot be emphasised strongly enough.

For FCA regulated firms it is the backbone that upholds the principles of good practice, ethical conduct, and responsible management, which are essential in today’s financial landscape. The FCA’s focus on governance, combined with the introduction of the Senior Management and Certification Regime (SM&CR), aims to reduce harm to consumers and strengthen market integrity by creating a system that enables firms and regulators to hold senior management, particularly those with SMF responsibilities, to account.

How Square 4 can help

We support firms to ensure that their governance arrangements are robust and that the critical aspects of the SM&CR have been implemented and embedded. With the advent of the Consumer Duty, the importance of strong governance to meet the higher expectations set by the FCA has only increased. Firms are required to act in good faith, avoid causing foreseeable harm, and support customers in pursuing their financial objectives. This necessitates a proactive approach to delivering good customer outcomes, which can only be achieved through strong governance and a culture focused on high standards.

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Service Benefits

  • Robust and effective governance is critical to ensuring firms’ strategies, governance, leadership, and their people and policies (including incentives at all levels) lead to good outcomes for customers.
  • The FCA expects firms to undertake ongoing reviews of its governance arrangements, continually reviewing its management information and risk management frameworks. Our expertise around best in class risk management allows firms to enhance their risk management capabilities, improves decision making and ensures that organisations adhere to regulations, thereby mitigating regulatory issues and risk.
  • Good governance, however, is not just about compliance; it's about creating a culture of accountability, transparency, and ethical behaviour that supports the organisation's strategic objectives and ensures its long-term success.

Further Depth & Detail

We have supported firms with all aspects of their Governance programmes. This has included developing the appropriate committee structures, reviewing and updating Statements of Responsibility to looking at outcomes testing frameworks and MI to evidence compliance with the new Consumer Duty.

Our ultimate aim is to support individuals and businesses with best practice and give the confidence to be able to sign off on any annual Consumer Duty report.

FAQ

Q. Why is governance so important under the Consumer Duty?

A. Boards and senior management within firms must use data to identify, monitor, and confirm that customer outcomes are consistent with the Consumer Duty. There are specific responsibilities on the governing body of a firm for ensuring that the Consumer Duty is embedded with the requirement of an annual assessment on compliance with the new Consumer Duty.

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