Factsheets

CBI's Dear CEO letter urges insurance firms to strengthen consumer protection frameworks, enhance risk management, and align governance for better consumer outcomes.

Discover the ECB's latest draft guidance on governance and risk culture. Learn key areas banks must address to align with regulatory expectations by October 2024.

It was broadly agreed that the implementation of the IAF will provide clarity of responsibilities, which will underpin sound governance across the financial sector, enhancing the culture of accountability in firms, and bringing clarity to individuals in respect of the standards of conduct they are expected to meet.

The Individual Accountability Framework (IAF) impacts all Regulated Financial Services Providers (RFSPs) and individuals who perform controlled functions (CFs) on their behalf. Certain RFSPs (including most credit institutions, insurance firms and MiFID firms) are additionally in scope for the Senior Executive Accountability Regime (SEAR).

As a result of Brexit, and particularly following the introduction of the UK’s Financial Services and Markets Act, there is a potential for increasing divergence between EU and UK financial services regulation.

Following enactment of the Central Bank (Individual Accountability Framework) Act 2023 on 9 March 2023, the Central Bank of Ireland (“CBI”) has launched a three-month consultation on key aspects of the implementation of the Individual Accountability Framework (IAF), including the publication of draft regulations and guidance.

The Individual Accountability Framework regulation is intended to improve executive accountability within the Irish Financial Services sector by increasing the transparency between Regulated Financial Services Providers (RFSPs) and the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI), particularly of where accountabilities lie in organisations. It follows in the footsteps of similar regimes successfully enacted in the UK, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

The proposed legislation follows on from the reforms proposed in the Central Bank’s report on Behaviour and Culture of the Irish Retail Banks published in 2018, which highlighted the shortcomings in the culture of Irish retail banks. The Central Bank has emphasised that there has been a focus both nationally and internationally since the global financial crisis on “strengthening corporate culture, driving positive behaviour and increasing individual accountability”.