Are UCIS the next toxic product?

Unregulated collective investment schemes have never been considered the most anodyne of financial products. Yet Gillian Roche-Saunders reports that heightened regulatory attention along with changes to the promotions regime, requirements on provision of advice and FSCS levies are making them even trickier to handle.

Gillian Roche-Saunders (GRoche-Saunders@bovill.com) is a consultant at Bovill, where she focuses on funds, e-money and payment services.

It will not come as a surprise that UCIS are not the FSA’s investment product of choice. Seen as high risk and with a history of being poorly handled by some firms, UCIS have long come with a health warning. Now signs suggest that a shift in approach – one that is even less favourable to firms dealing with UCIS – may be on the horizon.