The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has appointed Laura Dawes and Dominic Cashman as directors of authorisation and is reforming its process to speed up decision-making.
The regulator has faced complaints from the advice industry about how long it is taking to authorise firms and advisers with delays stretching into months.
FCA data published last week showed that in 2020 it took a median average of 144 days in 2020 to make a decision on insurance advice firm applications. This was down slightly from 156 days in 2019.
However, the time taken to issue rejections rocketed from 13 months (398 days) to 17 months (504 days).
Dawes is currently interim director of strategy, policy, international and intelligence in the FCA’s enforcement and market oversight division.
Meanwhile, Cashman joins the FCA from interdealer broker TP ICAP where he was most recently head of integration and transformation and, previously, interim group head of operations.
The pair start their new roles in late April and early May.
The FCA added it has committed to a more “robust and efficient” authorisation process, with greater focus on the financials and business models of firms applying to operate in regulated financial markets.
As well as recruiting almost 100 new colleagues into the whole organisation, it has reformed its authorisation process with more decisions now taken by individual senior managers rather than by committees.
Finance director hired
Alongside the director of authorisation appointments, the regulator further announced the hire of Craig Chapman as finance director, who joins the FCA in May.
He is currently chief financial officer at RTX RouteTrader, a fintech operating in the telecoms sector. Before that, he held senior finance roles at ED&F Man, a commodities trader, and Barclays Capital.
Chapman’s appointment follows the retirement of David Godfrey.
Emily Shepperd, chief operating officer and executive director of authorisations at the FCA, said: “I look forward to welcoming Craig, Dominic and Laura to their new roles later this spring.
“Tackling the risk of consumer harm starts when firms apply to us for authorisation. Dominic and Laura will lead this vital part of the regulatory system.
“Craig is an experienced chief financial officer who will play a central part in making sure we have the right resources and we’re using them in the best way possible to meet our important objectives.”