MBE19: Regulation could benefit the bridging sector

The FCA’s Senior Managers & Certification Regime (SM&CR) comes into force on 9 December.

MBE19: Regulation could benefit the bridging sector

Regulation could be beneficial for the bridging sector, industry spokespeople have claimed.

The FCA’s Senior Managers & Certification Regime (SM&CR) comes into force on 9 December.

Scott Marshall, managing director of Roma Finance, said: “One of the things that came out of the credit crunch was the way big banks behavior towards their customers.

“This is a problem that affects the entire industry whether regulated lenders like banks or unregulated short-term lenders.

The SM&CR regime is only designed to regulate the behaviour of directors of regulated entities. It doesn’t affect directors of unregulated entities.

“If the directors of unregulated entities were held to account and possibly faced fines or prison then they’d behave in many circumstances very different to their customers.

“The sooner the unregulated market is regulated the better it is for all customers involved in my opinion.”

Kay Williams, regional sales director for the North of England at Ultimate Finance pointed out the benefits of regulation.

Williams said: “It brings consistency within the industry which means it’s better for the consumer and I think it gives some more integrity to the market.”

The panel spoke at today’s Mortgage Business Expo at The Barbican Centre.