And so the year is nearly done. We plunge, as we must, headlong into the fast-flowing stream of ersatz festivity, constituted as it is of industrial sparking wine, excess stomach acid and regret. Of course, that might just be our Christmas do.
I just checked back on last year’s last-Update-before-Christmas Update and what do you know, it was right about this time that the FCA dumped a flurry of regulatory slurry (that’s the best poetry you’re going to read this festive season, siblings) on the floor in much the same way as I spent 20 minutes picking up Constituent Parts of a small dead thing deposited by the cat under my desk this afternoon.
They’ve only gone and done it again, the absolute legends. Last week we got stuff about sophisticated investors – I’ll come back to that – and MPS services. If you’re involved in running models, whether co-manufacturing, or doing your own advisory ones, or even just using a third party MPS, this discussion paper is worth a look. Pages 12 and 13 are what you seek, and thanks to Mr Barrett, currently waiting out a storm in Southampton, for the spot.
The sophisticated investors bit isn’t interesting in its own right, but Dylan’s piece in Citywire is, mainly for its headline: “FCA to free £10m-plus clients from shackles of consumer duty”. I think we have now moved to a place – maybe it’s silly season – where hacks and editors are purely creating headlines in order to get the below-the-line moonhowlers excited. If that isn’t what was happening here, then I can only assume we’re being given more than we needed to know about specialist restraint-based pursuits being on the mind of some of the Citywire staff. Merry Christmas!
To be honest, even most of the moonhowlers couldn’t be bothered with this one; a desultory couple of lunatics piped up but their hearts clearly weren’t in it. This was nicely balanced by one wag who made a crack about all his clients with £9.9m, and as a result is allowed one (1) pre-lunch Baileys each workday between now and Christmas Eve.
What larks, etc. And I don’t mean to be all po-faced and that, but I’m not sure describing something that’s meant to stop our industry ripping off consumers as ‘shackles’ is all that useful, particularly given the preponderance of moonhowlers who, while they may not have taken the bait this time, were no doubt nodding vigorously.
Anyway, there we go, and this week we get the proper stuff on Targeted Support, which is like a massive Christmas present for nerds. Happily this means we don’t have to give Mike his Christmas bonus as any amount of cold, hard cash will be as nothing compared to a couple of hours with this. I’m joking of course! We don’t pay Christmas bonuses.
I think that’s enough for this week; we’re all easing into the break in our own ways; in my case by realising how much I have to do before it and panicking. Next week will likely be the last Update of 2025; I’m not doing one on Christmas Eve because that’s silly, and I’m not doing one in between because…well, I’m just not. There will however be the traditional and rarely-read Albums of the Year blog, so don’t say I’m not good to you.
And your music choice is incredibly Not Christmassy because it’s not time yet. And if you know, you know what’s coming when it’s time. But for now here is the last single from the best thrash metal record of the year, and something that proves old baldy, beardy guys can still cut it. I wonder why I like it so much? Anyway, have a wee Christmas headbang to Symmetry by Swiss greats Coroner. Not too much though; we don’t want to be seeing any of that industrial sparkling wine again.
See you next week
Mark
