The FCA has banned financial adviser Daniel Thomas from working in financial services and also fined him £742,700 after finding that he recklessly gave defined benefit pension transfer advice when he was neither qualified to do so or was prevented from providing.
Mr Thomas, who was involved in a number of British Steel pension transfer cases, has appealed his Decision Notice to the Upper Tribunal where he will present his case.
The FCA will take no action against him until the Tribunal reaches its decision so the fine and ban remain provisional until then.
He was a director and financial adviser at DPT Financial Solutions Limited, an appointed rep of Quilter Financial Services Ltd which was based in Bridgend, Wales.
Over 5 years Mr Thomas advised 53 clients on 63 transfers out of defined benefit pension schemes and is believed to have earned more than £173,000 in fees. Some of these clients were members of the British Steel Pension Scheme, the FCA said.
According to the FCA, Mr Thomas repeatedly misled clients and pension providers about his professional qualifications, destroyed client records and failed to co-operate with the FCA's investigation.
The FCA claims he provided misleading information to his principal firm about his involvement in the pension transfer cases.
He was the only person at the firm approved to perform the senior level CF1 Director (AR) function and was responsible for compliance with Quilter’s AR Agreement. Under the terms of this agreement he was not permitted to give pension transfer advice relating to defined benefit pensions unless he held additional specialist qualifications.
The FCA alleges that he was aware that he did not meet the criteria required to be a pension transfer specialist.
In addition to providing DBP transfer advice to clients personally, during the relevant period, Mr Thomas also had business arrangements in place through which he referred clients seeking pension transfer advice to pensions transfer specialists who were outside the Quilter Network of financial advisers. Despite doing so, Mr Thomas repeatedly confirmed to Quilter that he had no such business arrangements.
Therese Chambers, executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said: “When you advise someone on their pension, you hold their future in your hands. Mr Thomas recklessly betrayed that responsibility. We will not stop acting against those ignoring our rules and unfairly putting people and their hard-earned money at risk.”
In addition to fining him £173,000 (plus interest), the penalty imposed includes an amount to reflect the seriousness of the misconduct, which is based on a percentage of Mr Thomas’ relevant income from DPT Financial Solutions Limited during the period connected to the breach. It also includes an uplift for failing to cooperate with the FCA’s investigation.