The Financial Services Authority (FSA) could be set to give more attention to firms offering self invested personal pensions (SIPPs), it has been claimed.
According to CityWire, the regulator could put such businesses under greater financial scrutiny after it intervened in Curtis Banks' takeover of Montpelier Pensions Administration Services' pension book.
The FSA stopped the SIPP provider from proceeding with the acquisition, telling the buying firm to set aside £125,000 for capital adequacy.
With the FSA having reportedly told Montpelier's parent group to spend a similar amount on reducing the risk of tax charges from unsuitable investments, it seems the regulator might be monitoring the SIPP landscape very closely.
According to its chairman, the Association of Member-Directed Pension Schemes has noticed a shift in focus from the FSA away from tax rules to SIPP regulation.
Robert Graves told CityWire that "as SIPPs have become more popular, they have become a bigger spot on the FSA radar".
"SIPP companies are now asking how far they should be going in terms of monitoring the business brought in by independent financial advisers," he said.
In other news, the FSA recently fined two directors of an independent financial adviser network.
Posted by Claire Robin