FMA Opens Consultation On Fair Outcomes For Consumers And Markets

The Financial Markets Authority – Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko – has opened consultation on its approach to outcomes focused regulation, including the fair outcomes for consumers and markets it wants to see financial service providers focus on. The FMA welcomes feedback from all its stakeholders.

A focus on outcomes means the FMA will be prioritising the end results we want to see for consumers and markets. Rules and “tick box” compliance are not an end in themselves.

This approach and these outcomes do not replace or introduce new rules or regulations. Since the FMA published its “Guide to the FMA’s view of conduct” in 2017, the FMA has expected firms to deliver fair outcomes. The consultation today signals the approach we’ll be taking when working with industry to deliver on this goal.

The fair outcomes for consumers and markets we are consulting on are:

• Consumers have access to appropriate products and services that meet their needs
• Consumers receive useful information that aids good decisions
• Consumers receive fair value for money
• Consumers can trust providers to act in their interests
• Consumers receive quality ongoing care
• Markets are trusted based on their integrity and transparency
• Markets enable sustainable innovation and growth

Providers of financial products and services are expected to take ownership of the outcomes and consider how their governance, leadership, management, and operations work together to deliver the outcomes in a way that is most appropriate and effective for their business. Developing consistency and certainty about our approach and the results we are focused on will make our vision clearer and more practical for the financial sector.

FMA General Counsel & Executive Director for Evaluation and Oversight, Liam Mason said: “These outcomes will inform how we exercise our role as a kaitiaki of financial markets and our approach to supervisory and enforcement work. It will support our work towards the FMA’s vision of more New Zealanders than ever believing our financial markets work well for them.

“We will always be a risk-based regulator, able to use a range of tools to respond proportionately to the harms and misconduct we identify. We believe that beginning our conversations with firms based on the outcomes we want to see, will help prevent harm in the first place. As we become a more outcomes focused regulator, this will require a shift in culture and mindset from us and firms to think about the results we want and have a shared interest in delivering for New Zealanders. The first step in this shift is the consultation, and we will be engaging and listening to all of our stakeholders over the next few months.”

© Scoop Media