As a subscriber to our FBC news, we thought you might be interested in the below newsletter which we’ve just sent to our corporate members.
As a FBC corporate member, you have access to a wealth of materials to support you in your fund board work. Below is a short reminder of all the materials FBC has produced in the last six months that you have access to.
Members of FBC access any of these materials, and more, on our FBC member portal knowledgebase. You can also share any materials with your colleagues (via the member portal “share” functionality).
FBC Memos
Senior Managers & Directors Conference – November 2024 (by invite only)
This year’s event included keynote addresses from senior regulators representing the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Ireland’s Central Bank, and Luxembourg’s CSSF. The regulators shared their priorities for 2025 and offered valuable perspectives on governance and regulatory developments across Europe.
Edinburgh Roundtable – October 2024 (by invite only)
This meeting centred around Consumer Duty, with expert contributions from FBC senior adviser Brandon Horwitz and Aidan McEvoy from the FCA. The session also included a Q&A where attendees discussed the regulator’s expectations, data-sharing issues with distributors, and the benefits of having Consumer Duty champions.
FBC CEO Roundtable – September 2024 (by invite only)
Moderated by FBC’s Shiv Taneja, the event featured insights from Sarah Cox (BNY Mellon) and Rhodri Mason (LGIM), with discussions on optimising iNED contributions, Consumer Duty reporting, balancing strategic and required agenda items, and building an executive pipeline.
A Brief Memo on Tokenisation – August 2024
A number of FBC’s members have raised questions about tokenisation, so we drew up a short memo explaining what it is, its benefits and some recommendations for fund boards.
FCA “Consumer Duty 1 Year On” Event – FBC Summary for Fund Boards – July 2024
The FCA hosted an event marking the first anniversary of Consumer Duty’s application to new and existing products, with FBC participating in both the main event and a roundtable discussion. The discussions highlighted the Duty’s first-year impact, examples of good practice, areas for improvement, and the FCA’s priorities for the coming year.
FBC Research
Artificial Intelligence (AI) – risks and opportunities for fund boards – November 2024
Themes explored by this research included asking where AI is being used in authorised fund managers (AFMs), and how AI risks are currently managed. The research revealed that there may be a need for more proactive oversight of how AI is already being implemented and monitored across different functions. We also provided recommendations for best practice.
Assessment of Value (AoV)- Profitability and Economies of Scale (EoS) – September 2024
In this research, FBC explored the different ways AFMs consider costs vs. charges in terms of fund-level profitability and EoS, including the role played by the fund board. Our research highlighted that firms are clearly engaged in AFM costs and EoS, but practices vary broadly, so we have included some key takeaways for fund boards to consider.
Consumer Duty Reporting – July 2024
This research explored the many changes that firms have made in response to the Consumer Duty. Our work found that while AFMs have clearly engaged positively with meeting the Consumer Duty requirements, there are still areas for development, and we have included questions for fund boards to consider to help evolve their approach.
iNED Remuneration Refresh
covers compensation data from 20 asset management firms and more than 49 independent directors and chairs currently sitting on ACD boards in the UK. In 2024 FBC asked members firms to update their data, to ensure that the benchmarking we provide to our members is as relevant and up-to-date as possible. A personalised iNED remuneration report is included as part of FBC corporate membership.
Get in touch if you’d like to know more.
Board Assurance Reviews
FBC has been collecting data on how member firms approach reviewing their fund boards. This includes the frequency, scope and extent of those reviews, and how the output is being used. Participating firms can access comparative data on how their current approach relates to wider industry practice, as well as FBC’s recommendations.
Get in touch if you’d like to know more.
FBC Senior Governance Group
In 2024, FBC established a dedicated group to support senior Company Secretaries and governance professionals with responsibility for fund boards in the UK, Lux and Ireland. The group meets quarterly to share good practice on strategic fund governance and board effectiveness topics and feeds into FBC’s Fund Board Effectiveness research agenda. Participation in the group is open to all FBC Corporate Member firms.
Get in touch if you’d like to know more.
What’s coming up in Q1 2025
Looking ahead into the new year – 2025 promises to be a challenging year for fund boards, with continued regulatory demands whilst ensuring fund board effectiveness and good governance.
To support our Corporate Members, FBC has outlined a comprehensive agenda of initiatives for 2025.
Here’s what our Corporate Members can look forward to in the first quarter of 2025:
Digital meetings:
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Role of Consumer Duty Champions
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Private Assets and Valuation
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Reviewing Fund Board Performance workshop
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Senior Governance Group (by invite only)
In-person meetings:
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CEO Roundtable (by invite only)
Research:
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Overseeing Investment Performance in the context of AoV
Want to know more about our plans?
More information about these and other FBC events planned for 2025 can be found on the FBC 2025 Agenda for Corporate Members.
We’ll be confirming the dates for each of our events for 2025 soon – keep an eye out for our emails which will contain further information and how to register for each event.
Any questions?
If you’re interested in becoming a Corporate Member or for more information on any of the above, please contact the FBC team at contact@fundboards.org – we’ll be happy to help.
Forgotten your Member Portal password?
If you are an FBC Corporate Member, to reset your password simply go to the Member Portal login page from fundboards.org and click ‘Forgot Password’ – a new one will be emailed within a few hours (please check your spam in case it lands in there!). Once logged in, you can set a new memorable password.
