By ROBIN POWELL
We’ve written many times on TEBI about the failure of financial regulation in the UK. Even those, myself included, who were willing to give the Financial Conduct Authority the benefit of the doubt, have lost faith in its willingness to mend its ways.
For me, and for many others, the final straw has been its reaction to the Neil Woodford scandal. The FCA has failed and failed again on Woodford. It failed to act on, and perhaps even to notice, the problems the Woodford’s flagship Equity Income fund as it teetered towards disaster. And even now, almost three years since the scandal broke, we are still waiting for a report on the inquiry the FCA is supposed to have conducted.
Woodford himself and other intermediaries made millions of pounds for themselves by persuading people to invest in the Equity Income fund. Those who were persuaded are still awaiting justice. Some have lost so much money that they’ve had to delay their retirement. Others have already died.
Time for action
The time for words is over. Now it’s time for action.
That’s why I would urge you to join The Rally for Better Financial Regulation. It’s taking place in London next Tuesday afternoon, 24th May, and it’s organised by the Transparency Task Force, of which I’m proud to be an official ambassador.
“The rally will focus on our firm, evidence-based belief that the Financial Conduct Authority is not fit for purpose and that it needs to be robustly reformed, or if necessary replaced,” says TTF founder Andy Agathangelou.
“We are organising the rally because we believe the financial sector is profoundly important to the wellbeing of society, to economic stability and to political stability too; but we also believe that society cannot have the financial sector it needs and deserves if the regulatory framework that governs it is poor.
“Wrong at the top”
“The vast majority of FCA employees are honest, ethical, and hard-working people doing the best job they can. (But) we believe the authority is ‘wrong at the top’ and is subject to unhealthy external influences on it, for example from, HM Treasury, The City of London, the banks, and the financial sector’s major trade bodies such as UK Finance.
“We believe that the Financial Conduct Authority could, and should, be doing a much better job, particularly in relation to providing an appropriate degree of consumer protection.
“We believe that the Financial Conduct Authority could, and should, be doing a much better job, particularly in relation to providing an appropriate degree of consumer protection.”
High Court to Parliament
The Rally starts at The Royal Courts of Justice, then travels down the Strand and Trafalgar Square to HM Treasury at Horseguards Road, then onto Downing Street and then to Parliament. You will find full details on this dedicated website.
If you care about better outcomes for financial consumers in the UK, please join us.
Consumers deserve better. Let’s make our voices heard.
PREVIOUSLY ON TEBI
Overpaying to invest can cost you a third of your returns
Active share as a predictor of future performance
Is outperformance down to luck or skill?
When stocks and bonds fall together
Bogle’s legacy — folksy grandpa or investing punk rocker?
© The Evidence-Based Investor MMXXII
