PIMFA, the trade association for wealth management, investment services and the personal investment and financial advice industry, has welcomed the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) proposals for a simplified advice regime to encourage more consumers to seek financial advice and reduce the cost burden of advice for relatively simple financial decisions.

Simon Harrington Head of Public Affairs commented: "We welcome this proposal from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). PIMFA has long been an advocate of a simplified advice regime - setting out our own proposals for such a regime in a policy paper published earlier this year - and while we think that there are areas where these proposals could be extended upon, they represent a significant building block in providing individuals with a safe way to save and invest.

“Financial advice is an extremely important tool in helping people to adequately understand the options which are available to them, delivered by an individual who is appropriately qualified and, most importantly, not commercially incentivised to sell them products which are not in their own personal interest.

“These proposals provide consumers with a first step on the ladder towards accumulating wealth in an efficient manner and should build broader individual confidence in the saving and investment market and the financial advice profession more broadly. We look forward to engaging positively with these proposals.”