FCA hits Santander UK with £12.4m fine
The Financial Conduct Authority has fined Santander UK £12.4m for “widespread investment advice failings”.
The regulator said there was “significant risk” of the lender giving unsuitable advice to its customers.
It's also found an “inadequate” approach to considering investors’ risk appetites and, when it came to some customers, the bank apparently failed to regularly check that investments carried on meeting their needs, despite making promises to do so.
Santander’s agreed to contact all customers who were affects and, where sales were substandard, pay redress.
Tracey McDermott, director of enforcement and financial crime, said:
Customers trusted Santander to help them manage their money wisely, but it failed to live up to that responsibility. If trust in financial services is going to be restored, which it must be, then customers need to be confident that those advising them understand, and are driven by, what they need. Santander let its customers down badly.
Santander UK agreed to settle at an early stage of the investigation so its £12,377,800 fine was reduced by 30 per cent. Were it not for this discount, it would have been fined £17,682,730.