REGULATORY EXPERTISE
ROB FARDEY
Director of Compliance Services
Rob has just celebrated his one-year anniversary with SimplyBiz and has oversight of our Authorisation team and Technical Helpdesks , which provide essential front-line support for Members . Gaining direct authorisation is an often-daunting task and the team provides bespoke assistance to guide firms through the process of securing direct authorisation with the FCA . The team also provides support for firms wishing to change their business models and apply for permission variations or changes of key personnel with the FCA . The Compliance Technical Helpdesk is available to assist with any regulatory or compliance-based queries , whilst also supporting with a wide range of compliance activities including financial promotions reviews , RegData reporting , complaints reviews and SMCR queries . The Pension and Tax , Trust and Later Life Helpdesks provide specialist knowledge to assist Member queries in the more technical areas of these products . Rob is also responsible for our Training and Knowledge programme which provides courses to our Member firms in order for them to fulfil their CPD obligations and maintain competence . Key courses within the Knowledge programme are Supervision Workshops , SMF16 / 17 courses and Mortgage Fraud Prevention courses .
JILL HAMILTON
Head of Compliance Operations
In addition to a number of key internal operational functions , Jill heads up the teams which provide key supervisory and monitoring support to Members via the Business Support Unit ( BSU ). The BSU team is made up of nine members and supports firms via our Training , Competence and Certification Service , which provides a comprehensive monitoring service for advisers comprising of client file reviews , adviser KPI reviews , one-to-one meetings , adviser skills assessments , and annual fit and proper assessment support . The team also supports adviser and senior manager recruitment , and ongoing certification via the provision of credit checks , stand-alone fit and proper checks and criminal record / DBS checks .
KARL DINES
Head of Business Consultancy
Karl has been with SimplyBiz for 10 years and heads up the Business Consultancy department . This department works very closely with Member firms through one-on-one and group consultancy meetings which offer detailed deep dives into regulatory areas that really affect business performance . Key focus areas for the Business Consultancy team are establishing appropriate charging structures , building robust investment and retirement propositions , product governance and target market reviews , price and value assessments , and evidencing good consumer outcomes . Karl and his team have many years of experience within the industry , working with product providers and platforms to give them a well-rounded outlook on the whole advice process .
GARETH JOHNSON
Head of Investment Management Compliance
Gareth has been with SimplyBiz for three years and leads our Compliance Coverage team for firms who have chosen to incorporate discretionary management within their business . Gareth and a dedicated discretionary team cover both stand-alone DFMs and wealth management firms who have their own in-house discretionary team with clients ranging from start-ups requiring authorisation support to boutique discretionary firms and larger firms with their own dedicated compliance team looking for additional oversight and assistance . The team provides specialist coverage , including dedicated investment management audits and a full library of discretionary policies and procedures .
If you would like further information on any of the services provided by the compliance teams , or have any queries to direct to the teams , please contact :
Regulatory Consultancy – compliancevisits @ simplybiz . co . uk Advice Quality team – aqt @ compliancefirst . co . uk Authorisations Support – authorisation @ simplybiz . co . uk Compliance Helpdesk – compliance @ simplybiz . co . uk Pension Helpdesk – pensions @ simplybiz . co . uk
Tax & Trust Helpdesk – taxes @ simplybiz . co . uk Business Consultancy – bc @ simplybiz . co . uk Business Support Unit – businesssupport @ compliancefirst . co . uk Discretionary Firm Support – g . johnson @ signature-support . co . uk
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