The FSCA has decided that compliance officers or FSPs will not have to submit compliance reports this year. This was also the case from 2019 to 2021.
This was one of the announcements in FAIS Communication 13 concerning compliance reports, handover reports and irregularity reports.
The FSCA said it is in the process of developing a Conduct of Business Report (CBR) that all regulated entities will have to submit to the Authority annually. The CBR will replace the compliance report contemplated in section 17(1)(c) of the FAIS Act.
Note that compliance officers or FSPs that have not submitted compliance reports from the date of authorisation to 2018 are still required to submit their outstanding reports. A failure to submit such reports might lead to regulatory action.
Handover reports
The FSCA also said there will be no prescribed format for a handover report during 2022.
The “statement” referred to in section 17(1)(c), read with section 19(5)(a), containing the reasons for the compliance officer’s termination can therefore be submitted in any form and manner. For example, when a compliance officer resigns, he or she can merely send an email or letter to the Authority setting out the reason/s for and effective date of such resignation.
To clarify, the following compliance reports and handover reports do not have to be submitted this year:
- Category I FSP with a compliance officer;
- Category II and IIA FSPs (bi-annual report);
- Category III FSP (bi-annual report);
- Category IV FSP;
- Foreign FSP;
- Category I FSP without a compliance officer;
- Compliance officer handover report; and
- Key individual/sole proprietor handover report.
Irregularity reports
If a compliance officer is aware of any material irregularity or suspected irregularity by the FSP, he or she must inform the FSCA in writing.
Similarly, if a compliance officer resigns from an FSP and is aware of any material irregularity or suspected irregularity, he or she must, in addition to the handover report, submit an irregularity report to the FSCA.
