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The Financial Services Commission (FSC) came into existence on August 2, 2001 by virtue of the Financial Services Commission Act. It has replaced the Office of the Superintendent of Insurance (OSI) and Unit Trusts and the Securities Commission.
The FSC supervises and regulates the securities industry, the insurance industry and soon, the private pensions industry. As such it may be properly described as an integrated financial services regulator.
In being an effective regulator, the FSC has prudently structured the organization with specialist divisions designed to fulfill its mandate. The divisions include insurance, securities, examinations & investigations, legal, actuarial, corporate services and pensions. These divisions fall under an umbrella that seeks to effectively bring to fruition a mandate that is geared towards fostering professionalism within the industries that are regulated by the Commission.
The Commission has responsibility to manage proper administration of the securities and insurance laws. In doing so the FSC oversees the registration, solvency and conduct of approximately 114 firms and over 1,200 individuals doing business in the securities and insurance (life and General) industries. Such as: Securities Dealers Investment Advisors Securities Dealers’ Representatives Investment Advisors’ Representatives Mutual Funds Unit TrustsInsurance CompaniesInsurance Brokers Insurance Agencies Insurance Managing General Agent Insurance Sales Representatives Insurance Loss Adjusters Insurance Consultants
The FSC will be responsible for the registration and oversight of over 800 private pension plans and as yet an unknown number of pensions administrators and investment managers.
The FSC oversees these entities by administering a number of statutes and accompanying regulations. The relevant statutes are the FSC Act, the Securities Act, the Unit Trusts Act and the Insurance Act.
The FSC is governed by a Board of Commissioners established by law and made up of a Chairman, Dr the Honourable Owen Jefferson, OJ, and up to 9 other Commissioners, including the Executive Director. The Executive Director is appointed by the other Commissioners who in turn are appointed by the Minister of Finance. The Executive Director is the only full time Commissioner and he is responsible for managing the activities of the Commission.
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Brief History |
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Financial Services Commission of Jamaica
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