According to the FSA, the new prudential rules for personal investment firms (PIFs) have been created "for the benefit of advisers, not to make things more difficult for them".
However, if the regulator hopes for a pat on the back from advisers, they are heading for a rude wake-up call. Advisers argue the new rules will damage the industry at a time when they are struggling to keep their businesses afloat during a protracted recession. David Golder, managing director of Bankhall, goes so far as to say: "If the FSA really wanted to kill off the adviser community, it would struggle to come up with something better than this." The response to the new rules also calls into question the FSA's consultation methods which appear to create more confusion and bad f...
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