On Friday, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) published a draft declaration of crypto assets as financial products. “Globally there is rapid growing interest by retail investors to purchase crypto assets. South Africa has also experienced an exponential increase in the provision and use of crypto assets,” the FSCA acknowledged. According to the FSCA, the […]
The Office of the FAIS Ombud often receives complaints related to alleged unfair rejection of claims. One of the latest deals with the calculation of a waiting period that may be imposed in a funeral policy. Unpacking funeral cover waiting periods When applying for a funeral policy, no medical underwriting is conducted by the insurer […]
The FSCA has released the following Notices: 1. FSCA FAIS Notice 68 of 2020 Amendment of Exemption of Certain FSPs who are Long-term Insurers or Short-term Insurers from Section 13 of the General Code of Conduct, 2020. The purpose of the above-mentioned amendment is to extend the Exemption of Certain FSPs who are Long-term Insurers […]
Draft Public Compliance Communication No. 12A (PCC 12A) that provides guidance on outsourcing of compliance activities to third parties, has raised a few questions. Carolee Reyneke-Minnaar of Moonstone Compliance provides some clarity on one. PCC states the following with regards to outsourcing of a compliance function: “7.1. Section 42A of the FIC Act requires that […]
As a result of the COVID 19 virus, the Office of the FAIS Ombud has also implemented measures to limit the spread of the virus in an effort to protect both employees and external stakeholders. All non-essential face to face meetings have been cancelled and any essential stakeholder engagements have been moved online. In a […]
The abhorrent practise of submitting a single premium investment as a recurring premium policy to earn a substantially higher commission is nothing new. If you then, in addition, destroy documentary evidence in the hope that you will not be found out, you should expect dire consequences. An even worst-case scenario: if you repeat such a […]
During the financial year the OFO received a total of 9323 new complaints, a reduction of 8.7% from the 10 211 received during the 2017/2018 financial year. However, the OFO finalised 9954 complaints, 6.8% more than the total amount received during the financial year. This is of course as a result of complaints carried over from […]
The Office of the FAIS Ombud (“OFO”) released its Annual Report for the year 2018/2019 last week, providing a review of its performance over this period. During the financial year the OFO received a total of 9323 new complaints. The report indicates that there was an increase in the number of complaints settled or resolved […]
The Office of the FAIS Ombud announced last week that Advocate Tshombe assumed the role of new Ombud for Financial Services Providers effective 1 November 2019. She takes over from the previous Ombud, Mr Naresh Tulsie, who had served as the FAIS Ombud since May 2018. Click here to read more about Advocate Tshombe’s qualifications and experience. There […]
During March 2019, the Office of the FAIS Ombud established a Client Care Centre to enhance the customer experience. The objective of the establishment of the Client Care Centre was to give life to some of their core values which include increasing awareness and educating those they serve about the services provided, so as to […]
