UK FCA statement on firms working together to manufacture products or services

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published a statement on firms working together to manufacture products or services. The statement is targeted at firms seeking clarity on how to apply the consumer duty to co-manufacturing or other collaborative arrangements when manufacturing a product or services. The statement confirms the FCA's intention to develop proposals for consultation following the regulator's letter to the Chancellor in September, setting out its plans to address concerns about the application of the consumer duty, particularly in a wholesale context.

In the statement, the FCA confirms that it has found that firms are applying the consumer duty beyond what the FCA intended, particularly in the areas of decision-making, allocation of responsibility, liability, and outsourcing. Going forward, the FCA will be looking to consider how the scope of the application of the consumer duty could be clearer, including the current exemptions and how firms are able to rely on each other when they work in distribution chains.

For further background on the FCA's work in this area, you may be interested in our webinar on this topic, available to watch here.

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