Posted on by Sheena Gillett

Press Release

PIMFA calls for suspension of the PRIIPs regime in the interests of investor understanding

6th December 2018

PIMFA, the trade association for wealth managers and financial advisers, believes that information being provided to investors in accordance with the PRIIPs KID regime is doing them more harm than good and that the ESAs’ hastily-drafted proposals for amending KID performance scenarios are unlikely to improve the situation. Although concerns about the reliability of KID performance scenarios have been the most headline-grabbing element of the PRIIPs regime so far, it has many other significant flaws which the ESAs’ recent consultation fails to mention at all.

PIMFA’s view is that retail investors should not be provided – as a matter of regulatory requirement – with product information that is, at best, unhelpful and, at worst, misleading. Consequently, we are calling for the application of the PRIIPs regime to be suspended until such time as a full and thorough review is completed and a more informative, fit-for-purpose regime that both consumers and industry can have confidence in can take its place.

PIMFA considers that Monday’s vote by the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee to extend UCITS’ exemption from the PRIIPs regime by 2 years to 31 December 2021 and to set a new deadline of 31 December 2019 for the European Commission to complete its review of the PRIIPs Regulation paves the way for such an approach. It also signals a wider recognition that piecemeal amendments of the type proposed by the ESAs are not the way forward.

Liz Field, PIMFA’s CEO, said “We believe that the ESAs’ consultation exercise is misconceived, a “sticking plaster” that can neither hide nor address the fundamental flaws of the regime as a whole. Virtually every aspect of the PRIIPs regime – scope, risk indicators, cost disclosures, access to third country products – is problematic and the ESAs’ targeted review looking only at performance scenarios fails to acknowledge or address this.”

“An immediate suspension of the PRIIPs regime would have multiple benefits – it would prevent investors from being misinformed by regulatory disclosures, it would save industry from spending time and money on ill-considered quick-fixes that do not work, it would provide time for a thorough-going review of all aspects of the regime and it would enable a fresh start at some future point that regulators, industry and investors alike could support.”

PIMFA’s response to the ESAs’ “Joint Consultation Paper concerning amendments to the PRIIPs KID” can be found here.

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Notes for Editors

About PIMFA – the Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association

  • PIMFA is the  trade association for firms that provide investment management and financial advice to everyone from individuals and families to charities, pension funds, trusts and companies.
  • PIMFA represents both full and associate member firms. Full members provide a range of financial solutions including financial advice, portfolio management, as well as investment and execution services. They assist everyone from individuals and families, to charities and pension funds, all the way to trusts and companies.  Associate members provide professional services to the PIMFA community.
  • PIMFA leads the debate on policy and regulatory recommendations to ensure that the UK remains a global centre of excellence in the wealth management, investment advice and financial planning arena.  Our mission is to create an optimal operating environment so that its member firms can focus on delivering the best service to clients, providing responsible stewardship for their long-term savings and investments.
  • PIMFA was created in 2017 as the outcome of a merger between the Association of Professional Financial Advisers (APFA) and the Wealth Management Association (WMA) with a history as a trade association going back for 27 years – read more.
  • pimfa.co.uk

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