Do structured products deserve to be in the firing line again?

Another week another damaging story for the structured products industry. The headline ‘FSA fines Credit Suisse UK £5.95m for structured product failings' undoubtedly sent terror into the hearts of investors.

They must have hoped the days of large scale problems related to these vehicles were behind them following the huge clean-up operation post-Lehmans.  However, rather than the fine relating to issues with Credit Suisse- backed products, as the headline perhaps suggests, the failings were linked to sales by its private bank of structured capital at risk products (SCARPs). So another mis-selling issue rather than a fundamental problem with the products themselves.  The fine also relates to a period between January 2007 and December 2009 – so rather than a new problem this is a retrospe...