BETTER FINANCE welcomes the recent opinions of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) and the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) on the proposed “PEPP” EU Regulation, but remains concerned regarding the recent developments at the European Parliament and Council, in particular with regards to the capital “protection” and the tax
With fewer individual investors investing directly in equities and bonds and households being sold packaged products instead, the products EU citizens invest in are becoming increasingly complex. As a result people struggle to understand and to trust the financial products they are invested in. Whereas new technologies and FinTech are, in principle, cutting out the
On Thursday 28 June, the European fund and asset management industry body issued a press release stressing the worrying shortcomings of the rules governing the Key Information Documents (KID) for Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs). This follows the publication of its Evidence Paper that found that the new methodology for calculating transaction costs
BETTER FINANCE`s 2017 study on the Mis-selling of Financial Products put mis-selling on the radar of the EP, with five recent ECON studies referencing the study as well as quoting BETTER FINANCE`s extensive work on the subject. Also quoted was BETTER FINANCE`s replication of the 2016 ESMA study on closet indexing. Although the fact that
The Pan-European Trade Association for Financial Advisers and Intermediaries (FECIF) announced the creation of the FECIF European Pension Institute (FEPI) on Monday 11th of June. Determined to have more say on the ongoing development of a PEPP (pan-European Personal Pension Product), FECIF Board Member Daphne Foulkes will Chair the Institute. Commenting on the launch, Foulkes
BETTER FINANCE’s Managing Director, Guillaume Prache, participated to a roundtable discussion on the Future of Finance in Europe, hosted by Ana Botin, Executive Chairman, Santander. On 6 June Santander’s Ana Botin, the European Commission’s Roberto Viola, Starling Bank’s Anne Boden and BETTER FINANCE’s Guillame Prache discussed the future of finance in Europe and whether digital
Examining the treatment of retail holders of debt financial instruments, in the context of the BRRD and MiFID II, ESMA and EBA released a joint statement on the 30th of May. The joint statement is clear in its conclusion: “institutions and authorities must consider retail holders of debt financial instruments in resolutions”. Based on data
2018 saw the start of the implementation of the packaged retail and insurance-based investment products (PRIIPs) regulation, imposing a new standardized information document (KID) to parties providing investment products. BETTER FINANCE, ahead of the curve, was quick to point out the inconsistency between MiFID II`s rejection of future performance based on past performance, and the
Taking heed of the increasing importance of ESG factors within the global financial system, as well as the desire by individual investors to have access to socially responsible investment alternatives, Tree Top Asset Management launched their “fund that cares” on 24 April in cooperation with the King Baudouin Foundation. Introducing a new approach to responsible
In a recent study on Eurozone interest rates compiled by Eric Dor, the Director of Economic Studies at L`Ieseg School of Management in Paris and Lille, Belgium features at the bottom of the ranking with a reported nominal interest rate of 0.03%. The study is based on data from Eurostat and the ECB, and compares