With seven months to go until the ‘soft’ deadline for full financial advice provider (FAP) licensing, the regulator is about a sixth of the way through the job – assuming all current transitional licensees make the leap.
In its latest update, the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) says more than 300 full FAP licences were issued by mid February compared to 1,800 approved under the transitional regime that came into force last March.
The FMA says full FAP applications are coming in daily but back-of-the-envelope maths suggests the regulator would need to see about 10 per (working) day to match the full transitional complement by the proposed cut-off point.
“Many advice businesses are telling us they are focussing on getting ready to submit their full licence application ahead of the target date of September 30, 2022, which is the target date for all Class 1 or Class 2 financial advice providers to apply for their full license,” the regulatory update says.
“These efforts in getting licence-ready will be giving those firms a boost in confidence when meeting the demands of the current environment.”
Chris Revell, who was promoted to FMA manager licensing this January, says the regulator is keeping lines of communication open with advisers to ease the process.
“Right now, we have team members available to answer your questions, so if you have a question about the process or getting ready to apply, just get in touch,” Revell says. “If you’d like us to call you back just ask.”
Over the next few months, Revell – along with senior FMA licensing leaders John Botica, Derek Grantham, Anita Frazer – plan to meet “as many advisers as we can”, online or in-person, the update says.
“We’re keen to hit the mark, so please do keep those questions and comments coming, as we find the best ways to support as many applicants as possible with their FAP full licensing preparation.”
Full FAP licensing is scheduled to go live in March 2023 but not all of the 1,800 plus licensees are expected to upgrade as advisers either exit the industry or merge businesses.
The February FMA publication also features a Q&A with new chief, Samantha Barrass, who joins just as the regulator faces significant growth in responsibilities – including, but not limited to, climate-reporting and financial institution conduct oversight – and budget.
“There’s nothing that the FMA does that I haven’t been involved in regulating in some way, at some point in my career,” Barrass says. “I’ve also spent a lot of time leading organisations through periods of remit change and expansion. So it was a perfect fit career-wise.”