Revisiting MCOB, amid mortgage market shake-up

On the heels of last month's Mortgage Rule Review consultation to simplify the current framework, the regulator will now launch a "public discussion" on the future of the mortgage market. In the first of two articles, Adam Samuel reviews the Mortgage Conduct of Business sourcebook.

Adam Samuel BA LLM DipPFS MCISI FCIArb Certs CII (MP&ER) Barrister and Attorney may be contacted at adamsamuel@aol.com. You can purchase Adam's latest book 'Compliance - a Short Book' at www.amazon.co.uk/Compliance-Short-Book-Adam-Samuel-ebook/dp/B0CTRYBN1J/. For links to where you can buy the second edition of 'Consumer Financial Services Complaints and Compensation', see www.adamsamuel.com/writing.

The Financial Conduct Authority grabbed the headlines in March by announcing a review of MCOB. Reasonably, it focused on improving access to mortgage finance by relaxing affordability limits and restrictions on customers' ability to borrow without receiving advice. The regulator has announced that it wants to go further in easing some of the unnecessary rules. So, without ignoring the current FCA proposals, this article goes through the key MCOB provisions, looking perhaps for the regulator's next steps towards reforming its rules.