The emergence of product governance regulation is one of the most important developments in 21st century regulation in both the UK and globally. In its two consultation papers this year on a Consumer Duty, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) essentially proposed a series of obligations which basically amount to the extension of the detailed PROD rules for investment and insurance governance to all regulated firms. Providers and distributors of mortgages, deposits, consumer credit and bank accounts currently must only follow the RPPD regulatory guide and the principles to which it refers. They now need to raise their game to Consumer Duty-level to prepare for the FCA's plans.

UK Finance members need to build and maintain the structures required to make product governance work and carry out the key activities of identifying target markets, ensuring that their products provide value for money, product testing, managing internal and external distribution, reviewing and spotting and reacting to events that pose risks to their products.

The objective of the course is to make participants comfortable with the journey from RPPD to PROD, as well as the proposed Consumer Duty and its application to both manufacturers and distributors of products, enabling attendees to understand the structures and work required to maintain quality offerings and distribution. 

The value to participants is a sound knowledge of both the proposed Consumer Duty, PROD and RPPD and their current and likely future application to product governance for both manufacturers and distributors in their areas.  

The training approach will be interactive with the use of case studies and examples and will be geared towards the sharing of best practice between the participants.

Learning outcomes:

Delegates need to attend to understand the structures, approaches and tasks required to achieve reasonably safe product governance, understand what the FCA is doing in this space, know the basics of how to develop and maintain safely FCA-regulated products and distribute them and understand the rules applicable to these activities.