Firms' refusal to pay their case fees to the FOS until the outcome of a judicial review into PPI mis-selling could exhaust the Ombudsman's reserves in six weeks and force it to raise its industry levy by as much as 25%.

The financial Ombudsman (FOS) is calling for a budget increase of up to £15m in 2011/12 to deal with a shift towards harder-fought cases, but says it will freeze case fees and its general annual levy for the second year running.

Mark Garnier MP says ill-feeling towards AIFA and the CII is "widespread" in the letters he receives from IFAs, who say the bodies either fail to represent or listen to their members.

Anthony Gould, former group editor-in-chief of Incisive Media's insurance division, is to join the CII as director of faculties.

The Luxembourg court is 'unlikely' to extend the provisional administration period of Keydata-backer Lifemark beyond February, says PwC, raising serious questions about whether the fund can be restructured in time to avoid bankruptcy.

An analysis the FSA ordered from PwC into what went wrong at RBS cost more than £7.6m, according to a Freeedom of Information (FOI) request.

A 98-year-old pensioner furious at being hit with overdraft charges has decided to turn the tables on her bank, by mimicking the demands it makes of her as a customer....maybe.

The European Commission (EC) is proposing to abolish execution-only services for non-complex financial products to eliminate uncertainty on which ones qualify as 'simple'.

Ruth Lea, economic advisor to the Arbuthnot Banking Group and senior fellow of the Adam Smith Institute, says 2011 holds some room for optimism but overall the near future isn't bright.

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has kicked off its £4m consumer awareness campaign with a plasticine man being decapitated by a bear. Discuss.