Incidental financial business: amendments ahead

The Society’s incidental financial business (IFB) rules need to be amended at this year’s Special General Meeting on 23 September, due to the impending regulatory regime change for consumer credit work, This is because from next year, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) will assume responsibility for consumer credit regulation from the OFT.

Group consumer credit licences will cease. Instead, incidental consumer credit work will become a new category of IFB work. The proposed rule change (see bit.ly/190PkXS)adds consumer credit activity into the general definition of IFB work, as well as defining “consumer credit activity”. A number of minor changes are also made in the rules due to the establishment of the FCA earlier this year. Those practices which conduct standalone consumer credit work (which will include debt collection) are likely to require authorised professional firm (APF) authorisation from the FCA from 1 April 2014, if such work is not incidental to specific legal activities.