FECIF NewsFlash 9/2012: FOR INFORMATION EC event on financial advice provided by non-profit entities to consumers

Executive Summary

The European Commission was looking for a contractor to organise EU funded training in financial services for non-profit entities who provide information and advice to end users of financial services. The Commission has informed us that the contract has been awarded to a consortium consisting of BEUC, the European Consumer Association, and IFF, the ‘Institut für finanzdienstleistungen”, based in Hamburg, Germany.

On 7^th February 2012 the Commission is organising an event during which this project will be presented. Please find the agenda attached.

Additional information

In 2010 the European Budgetary Authority allocated EUR 1 million to the European Union budget for a pilot project concerning consumer empowerment, efficiency and stability of European Financial Markets through training. Concretely, funding would be available to organise training courses in financial services for consumer associations and other interested non-profit parties who provide information and advice to end users of financial services. 

The European Commission’s DG SANCO, in charge of this file, asked German-based consultant Civic Consulting to map the non-profit entities in the EU that would be eligible to receive such training. Important to note is that only those non-profit entities that provide “general financial advice” are eligible to receive training. This term was defined by the EC as the provision of personalised financial advice to consumers in general terms about financial planning and about the purchase of financial products, such as consumer credit. This advice should be tailored to meet the needs of a specific person or household and be provided face-to-face, by phone, by e-mail or by electronic means (such as e-mail or online chatting) – hence being personalised. It excludes recommendations of specific products or providers.

Key findings of the Civic Consulting study include:

-       Civic Consulting identified 51 entities in the EU, the majority of which are consumer associations, which provide general financial advice to consumers;

-       Of these 51 entities, 76% offer advice to consumers on consumer credit;

-       Consumer credit was identified by these entities as the second highest ranked topic on which they would like to receive training in potentially EU-funded training sessions;

-       The majority of entities are “hardly” or “not at all” satisfied with their level of funding for the provision of personalised financial advice; and

-       The study concludes that a specialised EU training programme on the provision of personalised financial advice would fill a market niche. Such a programme should take into consideration language barriers, difference in training needs according to regions/Member States, national characteristics of financial markets and existing capacities for the provision of financial advice.

Laura Reginato

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