UK can proceed with full adviser commission ban, says EC

A UK ban on the payment of commission from providers to advisers who sell its products can go ahead unchanged and unhindered, the European Commission (EC) has said, quashing concerns a Europe-wide directive could scupper the requirements.

According to an unnamed EC spokesperson quoted in the Financial Times, the Retail Distribution Review (RDR) is expected to be “compatible” with the MiFID II directive, which was published last month. This included proposals on banning inducements for independent advisers but makes no mention of non-independent distribution models.   There had been concerns the directive would threaten the RDR, which will ban all commission payments from providers to advisers, tied or independent, from the beginning of 2013.   However, the apparent omission of tied advisers from MiFID II may have m...