1. Robust and effective governance in a regulated firm is a business imperative. A structured,
flexible and tailored control framework is an essential business tool to achieve this and
provides competitive advantage.
Bespoke Governance & Regulatory
Control Frameworks for Regulated Firms.
2. Achieving high regulatory standards is a
critical requirement for all regulated
businesses.
The impact of the Senior Managers and
Certification Regime and the ever-
increasing responsibility and
accountability for Senior Managers to
achieve high cultural and regulatory
compliance standards should not be
underestimated.
Ensuring clearly defined arrangements
to facilitate the achievement of good
governance supported by robust
records is essential to deliver and
demonstrate how high standards have
been maintained.
Regulatory
Control Environment
Ethical and cultural tone set from the top and
effective governance oversight.
Risk Assessment
Identification, impact assessment and allocation of
ownership of key regulatory risks.
Control Activities
Policies, procedures and processes identified as key controls, linked
to key risks and key regulations.
Monitoring Activities
Ongoing monitoring, thematic reviews and audits to assess
effectiveness of Control Framework.
Information and Communication
Acquisition and generation of information from internal and external sources to support senior
manager regulatory responsibilities.
Regulatory Control Framework
3. What we do
Bespoke GRC offer a range of services to
assist firms tailor and optimise their
regulatory control frameworks. Services
provided to firms will differ depending on the
needs of the client reflecting the delta
between their “as is” state and their optimum
state.
• For new firms this could include a design,
implementation and embedding service. For other
firms this may be assessment, refinement and roll-out
services.
• Our highly-experienced Governance, Regulatory,
and Compliance practitioners, will review your
governance and regulatory control environment
helping you ensure you have a sound governance
framework around your business strategy and
operational needs.
• We deliver solutions that integrate seamlessly
within your operational and control
requirements to ensure that the right
resources are in place to maintain your
Regulatory Control Framework post-
implementation.
• We can also provide support to individual
Senior Managers with new roles or
responsibilities through our innovative “in-
placement” service, Bespoke GRC 100.
Our Expertise
With a combined experience of over 75
years in financial services, we are a team of
experienced professionals with a proven
record of building and operating
governance, compliance, assurance and
regulatory functions from within a broad
range of regulated businesses.
• We have lived many of the challenges our clients face
and we have built governance, regulatory and
compliance functions and frameworks from inside
regulated firms.
• We have senior management experience across
regulated firms including retail banking, mortgages and
insurance.
• We have worked in start-ups, turnarounds, right-sizing
and established firms and understand the different
challenges each change process brings.
4. Our team credentials and areas of specialism
Our teams’ credentials and areas of specialism
Legal and Governance – Zoe Bucknell
As an experienced General Counsel and Company Secretary, Zoe has extensive experience in building and developing teams across Legal, Company Secretarial,
Compliance and Regulatory Affairs functions. As such, she brings a practitioner led approach to working with executives to design and deliver organisational
change to better align compliance, governance and regulatory functions to strategic goals, operating models and regulatory change management.
Zoe has significant financial services experience spanning two decades and has a proven track record of being a trusted adviser to Boards in delivering strategic and
governance guidance in rapid change environments, with an ability to quickly build relationships through a deep understanding of financial services businesses and
effective communication at all levels.
Zoe has built governance frameworks for firms listing on both AIM and Main Market, compliance and regulatory frameworks in the retail insurance and retail bank
sector, and most recently managed the implementation of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SM&CR) at a Challenger Bank.
Compliance and Assurance – Stephen Whittingham
With over 15 years’ experience in senior compliance and financial crime roles across a range of small and large regulated firms with multiple product offerings,
Stephen brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to BGRC.
In particular, his expertise in the effective operation of Compliance and Financial Crime functions including assurance, policy and business support disciplines is
considerable.
With a proven track-record in aligning Conduct of Business rules to regulatory requirements, he is a trusted adviser to senior management helping firms in
achieving high compliance standards through commercially sensitive and pragmatic solutions.
Regulatory Affairs – Donald Davies
As a Regulation Interpretation specialist and Regulatory Change Management practitioner, Donald has extensive experience in helping regulated firms identify,
navigate and manage the ever- changing regulatory landscape. This is achieved by implementing a regulatory change management framework that is proportionate
to the firm’s size and complexity.
Recent work has included oversight of the interpretation and implementation of the European Mortgage Credit Directive (EMCD), as well as the Senior Managers
and Certification Regime (SM&CR), whilst building, developing & mentoring a dedicated Regulatory Affairs teams. Working across the regulatory life cycle of
products, processes, policies and procedures, Donald helps firms make Regulation-led change assessment along with a review of existing and future strategy, to:
best meet and exceed regulator-driven requirements,
meet their responsibility to comply with requirements and standards of the regulatory system,
remain within accepted Regulatory Risk appetite.
5. Recent work by our Directors for regulated firms
Senior Managers and Certification Regime implementation
Assessment, interpretation and adoption of Regime requirements.
Challenger Bank - England
European Mortgage Credit Directive implementation
Assessment, interpretation and adoption of regulation
Challenger Bank - England
Group Governance Framework
Mapping of Governance, Policy and Procedures
Challenger Bank - England
Compliance Risk Framework
Assessment, interpretation and adoption of requirements into new operating model
Challenger Bank - England
6. Our Approach
We can, if required, provide an end to end
solution consisting of discrete stages
including initial analysis (and assessment of
your current environment), designing,
testing, implementing and embedding.
• Our flexible approach and pricing structure
enables our clients to choose all or some of the
stages tailored to suit their individual needs and
preferences.
• We offer an expert practitioner-led approach that
draws on in-depth knowledge of working within a
broad spectrum of financial services businesses.
• Our mission is to increase the efficiency and value
of outputs from your Regulatory Control
Framework, whilst delivering enhancedcontrol.
Our Philosophy
Our ethos is that a thoughtfully designed,
sensitively implemented and robustly
embedded Regulatory Control Framework will
bring benefits beyond just best practice
regulatory compliance, including:
• Providing Senior Managers with effective oversight
and regulatory knowledge in respect of their areas
of responsibility, enabling them to better meet their
regulatory responsibilities to take reasonable steps
to fulfil their Statutory Duty of Responsibility and
the Conduct Rules, AND in turn, spend more time
fulfilling the firm’s strategic objectives.
• Delivering efficient and timely regulatory change
management procedures which can reduce the
impact on resource requirements in both assurance
and business departments for managing regulatory
change, allowing BAU resource to remain focused
on existing business priorities, whilst aligning to
future operating requirements.
• Augmenting well-designed compliance
assurance procedures which will help you to
deliver enhanced consumer outcomes.
7. Helping you in building your enhanced regulatory control framework
Regulatory Control
Framework elements
Analysis and Assessment
of your current
requirements
Design & Test Implement & Embed
Regulatory Control Environment
Clearly documented and communicated Governance Framework and articulated Ethics and Culture policy.
Risk Assessment
Forward and backward looking regulatory risk identification and impact assessment.
Allocation of key regulatory risks to accountable individuals and creation of a Regulatory Dashboard
Control Activities
Clearly documented, communicated and effective policies and procedures linking key regulatory risks / rules to related
process and controls. Defined and implemented compliance function strategy, scope, structure, objectives and
responsibilities.
Monitoring Activities
A bespoke, risk based assurance model and framework.
Information and Communication
Effective attestation process giving Senior Managers assurance around their delegated responsibilities and areas of control.
Defined and created, bespoke reports integrated with governance framework.
