Financial services whistleblowing regime comes into force

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New whistleblowing rules come into force today that apply to banks and building societies, and some investment and insurance companies. The new rules, introduced by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority last year, are designed to encourage more employees to come forward if they suspect poor practice. They form part of the new Senior Managers Regime (SMR), which focuses on the behaviours of key individuals in financial services companies. Among the changes are the requirement for each company to appoint a senior manager as a whistleblowers’ champion and put in place internal systems to handle whistleblowing. The champion must be someone who is regulated as an accountable senior manager, such as a non-executive director. Financial services companies must also now produce annual reports on whistleblowing and update contracts and training to reflect their refreshed policies. The protection for whistleblowers will extend to anyone who raises concerns with the regulator, even if the concerns are not about a suspected breach of the rules. William Granger, partner at law firm Charles Russell Speechlys, said: “Firms and regulators must now offer more anonymity,