The Appointed Representatives Regime: Call for Evidence
Call for evidence description
The appointed representatives (AR) regime is a longstanding and widely used feature of UK financial services regulation. It was first established by the Financial Services Act 1986 for investment services activity, before being adapted and applied to a broader range of financial services activity through the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA) .
Since the regime began in 1986, the use of ARs has increased and spread across much of the financial services sector. There are now around 40,000 ARs operating under around 3,600 principal firms.
This Call for Evidence is an information gathering exercise on how market participants use the AR regime and how effectively the regime works in practice. The government wants to ensure it has a full and up-to-date understanding of how the AR regime is currently used. The Call for Evidence also gathers views on potential challenges to the safe operation of the AR regime and possible future reforms that might be considered to address those challenges.
Responses are welcome from authorised financial services firms, ARs or any firm connected with a business model which may involve use of the AR regime. The government also recognises the importance of getting views from other respondents. In particular, views are welcome from respondents on how the position of consumers, or the integrity of financial services markets, may be affected by use of the AR regime.
This consultation will remain open for three months, and close on 3 March 2022. Please submit your responses to appointedreps@hmtreasury.gov.uk.
Find the FCA’s consultation paper.