Financial institutions and firms must ensure retail investors are given accurate information on sustainability as a new anti-greenwashing rule comes into effect.
Sacha Sadan, director of environmental, social and governance at the FCA, said: “These new rules will help people make informed decisions about their money. Firms have had six months to prepare for the anti-greenwashing rule, which is linked to the Competition and Markets Authority and Advertising Standards Authority’s existing guidance on the issue.
A report from PwC and the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association released on Thursday outlined recommendations on how firms could implement the new rules, saying they were left “very little time” to digest the finalised FCA guidance. Lindsey Stewart, director of investment stewardship research at Morningstar, said: “While this ultimately helps investors make the right choices to match their sustainability needs, compliance is proving to be a heavy lift for many providers.”