Traders Working at Home Get Break From U.K. on Phone Taping

(Bloomberg) --

British bankers and traders working from home got some relief from the U.K. markets watchdog, which signaled it will give temporary leeway on rules requiring them to record calls with clients.

The Financial Conduct Authority told firms on Tuesday they should continue to tape calls when possible, but if they’re unable they should tell the regulator and come up with a plan to fix the problem.

“We accept that some scenarios may emerge where this is not possible,” the FCA said in updated guidance. “We expect firms to consider what steps they could take to mitigate outstanding risks if they are unable to comply with their obligations to record voice communications.”

The German watchdog Bafin has privately given guidance along similar lines to banks, people familiar with the matter said.

“Of course Bafin takes into consideration the special situation that banks currently find themselves in,” a spokeswoman said by email, without elaborating.

The FCA in its guidance Tuesday suggested that firms consider other ways to monitor business and conduct retrospective reviews once the coronavirus crisis has eased. The regulator, which oversees tens of thousands of firms, said companies also face difficulties submitting data to regulators and they should do so as soon as possible.

“This signifies a slight and sensible shift in approach,” Jake Green, regulation partner at law firm Ashurst, said in a statement. “The inference being that the clients’ best interest trumps recorded lines.”

The Alternative Investment Management Association, whose members manage about $2 trillion in assets, wrote to the FCA expressing concerns about firms’ ability to comply with certain requirements while staff are working from home or out sick, it said in a statement.

Separately, the FCA recognized that some listed companies might opt to hold virtual shareholder meetings this year.

Meanwhile, lobbying groups for traders in bond, repurchase and securities-lending markets called on European Union regulators to delay new reporting requirements to October from April 11 because of the difficulties firms face preparing for the start.

With so many staff working from home or possibly becoming sick, the International Capital Market Association and International Securities Lending Association said firms’ ability to assure compliance has become “critically compromised.”

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