Investment advisers will pay £78m towards the FSCS levy for 2013/14, £2m more than was initially predicted by the scheme.
The FSCS’s 2013/14 Outlook, published today, reveals a £285m total levy for the industry, lower than the £311m total previously indicated. The figure also includes £54m to be paid by general insurance intermediaries and £13m billed to life and pensions intermediaries.
FSCS chief executive Mark Neale said the debate over how the scheme is funded could continue in spite of the FSA’s recent overhaul of the levy system.
“I am conscious that the final outcome was not welcomed by all: in a zero sum game there is no plausible outcome which could have achieved unanimous support,” Mr Neale said.
“Nonetheless, the new arrangements provide a reasonable basis for sharing the costs of compensation across the industry and a model we will use for the foreseeable future.
“That does not mean, however, that the debate about the way FSCS is funded should now close down. Much of the unpredictability of the current funding arrangements could be eliminated by a move to pre-funding, but at the expense of taking capital out of the industry ahead of need. The industry needs to be clear how it views this trade-off.”
Mr Neale added there was “a good economic case” for a risk-weighted levy “but only if an objective and robust way can be found of capturing the additional risk presented by different business models”.
