De-Risking: Bank Access For Brokers And Asset Managers

The FCA has publicly announced an expectation that, in the context of managing money laundering risks, banks should not indiscriminately withdraw services from market sectors.

Brokers and asset managers with appropriate financial crime policies and procedures should have improved prospects to access bank services in difficult market conditions.

As a natural commercial response to the demands of ever increasing financial crime regulation (ABC, AML and sanctions) and punitive fines for systems and controls failings, some banks have ceased to provide services to categories of customer whose business they consider to be higher risk.

Brokers across all sectors (securities, derivatives, credit and insurance) and asset managers with customers in high risk categories, emerging markets in particular, may find access to money transmission, clearing and custody services blocked or restricted.