On October 17, 2022, Parliament published a letter dated October 14, 2022, from the chairs of the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee and Industry and Regulators Committee to the chief executive of the FCA, Nikhil Rathi.
The letter refers to the Bank of England's (BoE) emergency bond-buying programme and the correspondence between the committee chairs and both the governor of the BoE, Andrew Bailey, and the chief executive of the Pensions Regulator, Charles Counsell, asking how the regulators have monitored risks relating to the use of derivatives by DB pension schemes. The referenced (but apparently unpublished) responses appear to have highlighted the FCA's role as the regulator of pension investment managers.
In this connection, the committee chairs ask Mr Rathi for more information about:
- How the FCA oversees LDI funds and, in particular, how it oversees fund managers.
- The FCA's work to ensure LDI funds are better prepared for future stresses given the current volatility in the market.
- The steps the FCA has taken in recent years to minimise the risk to consumers with DB pensions from the companies it regulates, including LDI funds.
They request a written response from Mr Rathi as soon as possible.
The BoE's Financial Policy Committee considered the vulnerabilities exposed by recent gilt market dysfunction at its meeting on September 30, 2022. It reported that the BoE will work with the Regulator and the FCA to ensure strengthened standards are put in place.
