London Governance & Compliance Academy

Customer Care – FAQ

GOVERNANCE, RISK AND COMPLIANCE (GRC)

 

What is GRC?

GRC stands for Governance, Risk and Compliance and refers to a strategy for managing a firm’s overall governance, enterprise risk management and compliance with regulations. LGCA offers an array of GRC courses, please contact our experienced training consultant at info@lgca.uk who will be able to assist you in selecting the course that best fits your needs.

What is Corporate Governance?

Corporate Governance is the system of rules, practices, and processes directing and controlling a firm. It involves balancing the interests of all firm’s stakeholders including shareholders, senior managers, customers, and regulators. Corporate Governance provides the framework for attaining a firm’s objectives, and as such encompasses practically every aspect of management, from strategy to risk management and internal controls to performance measurement and corporate disclosure.

What is Risk Management?

Risk management is the identification, evaluation, and prioritisation of risks followed by coordinated application of resources to minimise, monitor, and control the probability or impact of unfortunate events or to maximise the realisation of opportunities.

 

How do I become a Risk Manager?

We offer an array of Risk Management training courses at entry and advanced level available in all the different forms, from self-paced online to face-to-face in-house, designed and taught by leading subject matter experts. For more information and guidance through our Risk Management Training Programmes you are encouraged to contact our experienced training consultant at info@lgca.uk who will be able to assist you in selecting the course that best fits your needs.

 

What is compliance?

Being compliant, in the financial services sector, means operating in accordance with laws and regulations. Compliance officers ensure that a financial services firm operates in accordance with both regulatory requirements and its own internal policies.

 

Why is compliance so important?

Last decade’s continuous regulatory change largely triggered by global war on money laundering and terrorist financing has brought compliance function to the very heart of any financial services business. Compliant operation is beneficial in many ways: it greatly reduces risks related to onboarding clients and abusive actions of the firm’s own employees and senior managers, allows for smooth operation, improves the firm’s market reputation, helps to avoid sanctions regulators impose on non-compliant firms etc.

 

What are the benefits of a career as a Compliance Officer?

Compliance Officers are in high demand amongst financial services firms that have expanded compliance departments by the ever-increasing regulatory obligations and compliance workload. It is a well-compensated job with growth possibilities: an average annual salary of a mid-career compliance officer in the UK is GBP 40,000 and senior Compliance Officers earn above GBP 100,000.

 

LGCA offers an array of compliance training courses at different levels which will help your career aspirations. Please peruse our catalogue of online self-paced courses and contact our experienced training consultant at info@lgca.uk who will guide you in selecting the programme that best fits your needs.

 

CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

 

  1. What is a CPD?

CPD stands for Continuous Professional Development. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the UK’s financial market regulator, sets a requirement that all financial services firm’s staff undergo a minimum of 35 hours of CPD a year, of which at least 21 hours should be in the form of structured training in subjects relevant to an employee’s role in the firm.

 

  1. Are there FCA CPD requirements?

Yes, as per TC 2.1.15 & 2.1.16, the requirement is 35 hours in each 12 months, including 21 hours of structured CPD activities.

TC 2.1.20G27/05/2022 (RP)defines structured CPD activities as follows:

Examples of structured continuing professional development activities include participating in courses, seminars, lectures, conferences, workshops, web-based seminars or e-learning.

 

  1. Do LGCA courses count towards CPD?

Yes, by completing most of LGCA’s training courses, both guided and self-paced, you obtain CPD points you need to fulfil FCA’s CPD requirements.

 

REGULATORY TOPICS

 

  1. What is GDPR?

GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulation, the European Union privacy and security law that holds in its scope and imposes obligations onto organisations worldwide so long as they target or collect data related to EU persons. GDPR was enacted on May 25, 2018 and imposes substantial (up to tens of millions of euros) fines for violating its privacy and security standards.

 

  1. What is SM&CR?

SM&CR stands for Senior Manager and Certification Regime. For financial services firms, it replaces the previous regulatory obligation of the Approved Persons Regime with the transition ending on the 20th December 2020. Under the SM&CR, Senior Managers of financial services firms are subject to FCA’s approval, while all other staff are to be certified for meeting qualification requirements, fitness and propriety on an annual basis by the firm itself. SM&CR also makes annual training of both Senior Managers and other staff in the Code of Conduct mandatory.

 

LGCA PROGRAMMES & ENROLLMENT

 

  1. What course should I undertake?

You should select courses that are relevant to your position at your firm or those in which you are interested.  For instance, a retail financial advisor may take a course on fair treatment of customers, while a MiFID II course may be taken by a compliance officer.

 

  1. What Global Qualifications can I get at LGCA?

LGCA is an Exclusive Training Provider of the Association of Governance, Risk and Compliance (AGRC), an Accredited Training Provider of the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment (CISI) and, through the EIMF Group, is an accredited or approved training provider for the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT), Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAAP), Association of Certified Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS), Chartered Institute of Management (CIM), EXIN and others. We offer an array of guided and self-paced training courses leading to these Global Qualifications.

  1. Are LGCA programmes jurisdiction-specific?

Many LGCA programmes are focused on the UK and the EU regulatory framework. LGCA also carries content relevant to non-EU jurisdictions such as Cayman Islands, as well as some courses specific to certain EU jurisdictions, such as Cyprus, Ireland and Malta. Our Global Qualification courses are not jurisdiction-specific and delve into global GRC issues.

  1. How do I pay for my course?

You have three options to pay for an eLearning self-paced course:

  • PayPal
  • Credit Card
  • Wire transfer

For in-person and/or online live courses, you may pay by wire/eBanking to our bank account. If you use this option, kindly send an email to info@lgca.uk attaching a SWIFT copy of your transfer.

  1. Is there a course catalogue for self-paced online courses?

You may access the catalogue here. Alternatively, you may contact our experienced training consultant at info@lgca.uk  and they will guide you in selecting the programme that best fits your needs.

  1. Is there a VAT in listed prices?

All prices listed within our eLearning platform are VAT-inclusive.

  1. For how long do I have access to a course?

The access period is specified in the description of each course.

  1. How do I contact an LGCA Account Manager for recommendations?

You are welcome to request a Free Consultation through an email to info@lgca.uk using the subject: Consultation Request.

  1. How do I get the LGCA Certificate after completing a course?

The certificate of completion is issued automatically and you may view, download or print it from within our platform.