Compliance Requirements for Financial Advisors in Philippines: Key Issues to Consider
In today’s fast-paced financial services industry, financial advisors in the Philippines face a multitude of challenges. From economic and market conditions to digital disruption, risk management, regulatory burden, and increased competition, the landscape is more complex than ever.
Economic and Market Conditions
The financial services industry is grappling with continued weaknesses due to aging populations, maturing markets, and stagnant growth. To remain competitive, financial advisors must focus on establishing an optimum resourcing model that implements a world-class internal audit methodology.
Key Issues:
- Aging populations
- Maturing markets
- Stagnant growth
Digital Disruption
In today’s digital age, IT systems are fundamental to any organization. Clients, customers, and regulators need to trust these systems, making it essential for financial advisors to design and implement effective IT risks and control solutions.
Key Issues:
- Trust in IT systems
- Effective risk management
- Regulatory compliance
Organizing Big Data
Executives must now contend with massive amounts of data, requiring them to identify irregular patterns and questionable transactions or relationships in source data that may indicate business risk exposures or fraudulent activities.
Key Challenges:
- Managing large datasets
- Identifying irregular patterns
- Staying ahead of fraudsters
Risk Management
Financial institutions cannot avoid risk entirely, and the most successful ones are those that identify appropriate levels of risk to assume and put measures in place to manage it. Financial advisors must provide timely reviews of processes and controls to ensure their design continues to address their needs while maintaining efficiency and effectiveness.
Key Considerations:
- Risk assessment
- Process review
- Control effectiveness
Regulatory Burden
Since the global financial crisis, regulation of the financial services industry has increased significantly. Embracing compliance can bring opportunities for growth, making it essential for financial advisors to stay up-to-date on regulatory requirements.
Key Issues:
- Regulatory compliance
- Staying informed about changes
- Leveraging opportunities for growth
Increased Competition
The competition within the financial services industry is strong, with consumers expecting more personalized service and automated processes with easier access. Financial advisors must provide these services to dominate their share of the market.
Key Challenges:
- Personalized service
- Automated processes
- Easy access
How We Can Help
PwC Risk Assurance - Financial Services offers a range of solutions to help financial advisors in the Philippines navigate these challenges. Our services include:
- Internal audit outsourcing and co-sourcing
- Independent compliance testing
- Business controls advisory
- Development of manual of operations
- Internal audit staff secondments
- ICAAP independent validation
- BSP Circular Compliance Assessment
By partnering with us, financial advisors can enhance their performance, drive value for their business, and stay ahead of the competition.