Self-invested personal pension (Sipp) provider Hartley Pensions has been told it cannot accept any new clients.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) placed a no new business restriction on the firm on 4 March 2022.
This means that Hartley Pensions “must not” accept any new clients and generate a new pipeline of clients.
Also, in relation to its Sipp and small self-administered pension schemes (Ssas) business, the firm must “be open and transparent and answer factually any enquiries, or concerns or queries” from “relevant third parties”, which includes product providers, advisers, introducers or pension scheme operators or administrators.
The UK regulator said that the firm is permitted to carry on the following regulated activities:
- Receive new contributions from an existing client solely for the purpose of adding/supplementing, and/or arranging the purchase of, standard assets for including in a Sipp or Ssas already held by the existing client; and
- Provide continuing support in the ordinary and proper course of business, including answering queries, to and for existing clients solely in relation to their existing Sipps and Ssas.
The restriction “will stay in effect until the FCA is satisfied that it can be lifted”, the watchdog said.
Client funds and asset retention
This comes days after the FCA told Hartley Pensions Trustees “to transfer any cash held for members under Sipp and Ssas schemes administered by the firm to any person in the firm’s group or that is otherwise a connected person of the firm”.
Then also, on 17 February, the FCA issued a asset retention restriction on Hartley Pensions.
It said that the firm “must not, without the prior written consent of the FCA, in any way dispose of, withdraw, transfer, deal with or diminish the value of any of its own assets, whether in the UK or elsewhere”.
The FCA declined to comment further on the restrictions.
A spokesperson for Hartley Pensions told International Adviser: “There is no impact on existing Hartley clients and we are in contact with all advisers and other business partners so their clients are informed.”
“We are committed to delivering the highest standards of products and services for our customers and are working closely to address feedback from the regulator before taking on additional Sipp or Ssas clients. This has been a voluntary action by Hartley and we are working closely with the FCA to address feedback.”
History
Hartley Pensions was launched and approved as a pensions operator under the Wilton Group in 2016.
The firm has been active in the M&A space and has taken on the books of a number of collapsed Sipp providers.
This includes buying the books of Guinness Mahon Trust Corporation, Berkeley Burke, GPC Sipp and Greyfriars Asset Management.
It has also been increasingly active in the international pension market – as it joined forces with RL360 and Ardan International to create Sipps.
Hartley also provided the underlying trustee and administration services for the Trireme Pension Services Sipp.
