The Local Government Association (“the LGA”) instructed Nigel Giffin QC to provide opinion on the issue concerning the extent to which a local authority or other body which is the administering authority of a fund established for the purposes of the Local Government Pension Scheme (“LGPS”) might in that connection be subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) pursuant to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (“FSMA”).

(Opinion, Legal position of LGPS FCA Opinion – of Nigel Giffin QC, pdf 12 pages 105kb)

Mr Giffin concluded that:

In managing an LGPS fund, the administering authority is not carrying on a regulated activity, and does not require FSMA authorisation. Nor do the substantive provisions of CASS apply to the activities of an administering authority acting as such, even though that authority may have FSMA authorisation for some other reason.