'It'll have to come out of our profits': Firms prepare for capital adequacy changes

At first sight, the incoming capital resources rules don't look dissimilar to the existing requirements: by the end of this year, firms must hold at least £15,000 in spare capital (rising to a minimum of £20,000 by 2016) against a current floor of £10,000. But the devil, as usual, is in the detail. The Association of Professional Financial Advisers (APFA), which is attempting to raise awareness of the implications of the changes, said it is important firms don't transfix on the £20,000 figure because, in some cases, they may need to look far, far beyond it. As APFA points out, the ...