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AFB Practice Workshop: How to Handle the FCA’s Assertive Supervision Effectively

The FCA’s intervention powers are the most immediately impactful part of its supervisory toolkit and are being used with increasing frequency.  This interactive practice workshop, in partnership with A&O Shearman will run through a three-part scenario exploring the different components of the FCA’s assertive supervision agenda.

Why attend?

This session will enable participants to more effectively respond to the full range of supervisory tools currently being used by the FCA under its more assertive approach to Supervision.  This includes firm visits, regulatory interviews, information requests, VREQs, and skilled person appointments.  Participants will be given key insights into the supervision and enforcement risk such tools present, and real-life advice on how best to mitigate those risks in a practical and interactive setting.

Specifically, the scenario will explore: 

  • how to respond to an information request
  • the importance of an overall strategy and narrative for both visits and information requests
  • how to prepare for and manage interviews with regulators
  • the different types of risk such a visit present and how best to mitigate them 
  • how to approach a draft Requirement Notice
  • how to approach the appointment of a skilled person
  • the importance of an overall strategy and narrative
  • how to effectively manage the skilled person and FCA/PRA through the process
  • how to approach a draft VREQ
  • the supervision and enforcement risk surrounding a VREQ and how best to mitigate it
  • the practical considerations for ensuring a firm’s ability to comply with a VREQ

What will members gain for use at their bank?

  • A deeper understanding of the key tools used by the FCA as part of its more assertive approach to supervision
  • Practical advice based on real-life examples on how to most effectively manage the supervision and enforcement risks presented by these tools and the FCA’s overall approach
  • The opportunity to share and learn from peer experiences
  • insights to ensure that you are prepared for the use of these tools in a live situation.

Who should attend?

The session is designed to assist professionals from compliance, legal and risk functions.

Speakers

The session will be hosted by regulatory specialists from A&O Shearman, including:

Marc Teasdale, Managing Director Litigation and Investigations

Marc is a highly experienced ex-regulator with over 20 years of experience at the Financial Conduct Authority and Financial Services Authority, including 15 years at a senior leadership level. 

He brings this experience to bear by providing practical strategic advice to the Boards and C-suites of financial services clients on their most important and challenging regulatory issues.

Since joining A&O Shearman, Marc has advised clients across the broad spectrum of financial services firms, including banking, insurance, and asset and wealth management.  Marc frequently advises clients on their most sensitive and high stakes regulatory interactions, including situations where regulators are proposing to use tools such as business restrictions, attestations, and inclusion on the Watchlist.  Marc also has an extensive SMCR and governance practice, and often works alongside colleagues from A&O Shearman’s legal practice groups to enable the seamless provision of strategic regulatory and legal advice.

Marc is approved to act as a Skilled Person under Lots B (Governance, Accountability, Strategy and Culture) and C (Controls and Risk Management Frameworks) of the FCA and PRA Skilled Persons Panel, and has also supported and advised clients where a Skilled Person appointment has been required.

Sarah Hitchins, Partner Litigation and Investigations

Sarah is a Partner in our Litigation & Investigations group, where she specialises in advising firms on regulatory and internal investigations involving the most high-profile and sensitive issues, including those involving the FCA, where she previously completed a secondment in its Enforcement Division.

She has significant experience of advising on and conducting UK and cross-border investigations involving a broad range of issues, including individual accountability, remuneration adjustments, governance, risk management failings, systems and controls issues, market abuse/conduct, operational resilience incidents, conduct risk failings, whistleblowing, cultural issues and non-financial misconduct. The results of internal investigations that Sarah has led on these topics are often shared by firms with the FCA and/or the PRA.

Sarah had advised and supported a number of firms in relation to a significant number of Skilled Person Reviews, including those relating to governance, culture, whistleblowing, individual accountability, financial crime, systems and controls issues, oversight failings, risk management failings and alleged fraudulent conduct.

Alongside her investigations practice, Sarah has advised almost 300 firms (including banks, asset and investment managers, insurers, benchmark administrators and credit ratings companies) in relation to the UK Senior Managers and Certification Regime, which has also involved her advising extensively on those firms’ governance and whistleblowing arrangements, as well as their regulatory consequence management processes to handle suspected breaches of COCON, FIT and related remuneration adjustments.

Logistics

Format:   In-person at A&O Shearman, One Bishops Square, London, E1 6AD

Cost:        £265.00 + VAT

Date:       Tuesday 18 March 2025

Time:       08:30 – 11:00 (Registration and breakfast from 08:30-09:00)

Places:     Maximum of 30 people

If you would like to submit a question or have any specific areas that you would like the session to address, please send them to the AFB at secretariat@foreignbanks.org.uk. You will receive final event details one week before the event.

Please note that the cost charged for this event is payable to the Association of Foreign Banks. A&O Shearman is not charging the AFB or Members for hosting this event.