Lords private notice question on what steps they are taking to protect shareholders in major British firms from being targeted by mini-tender offers which seek to enable unauthorised overseas firms from buying shares from vulnerable share- holders below their market value.

Lords private notice question on what steps they are taking to protect shareholders in major British firms from being targeted by mini-tender offers which seek to enable unauthorised overseas firms from buying shares from vulnerable share- holders below their market value.

My Lords, the Government are committed to promoting the culture of retail investment. We are concerned by reports of shareholders being targeted by unsolicited offers to sell their shares below market value. Share- holders should exercise caution and carefully consider any such offer. The law is also clear: communications relating...

My Lords, the Government are committed to promoting the culture of retail investment. We are concerned by reports of shareholders being targeted by unsolicited offers to sell their shares below market value. Share- holders should exercise caution and carefully consider any such offer. The law is also clear: communications relating...

My Lords, I thank the Minister for his Answer, but there is no way that the offer can be considered fair. It cannot be justified as being in the shareholders’ interests. It does not mention that Aviva has its own small shareholder dealing service, for example. The gaps in shareholder...

My Lords, I thank the Minister for his Answer, but there is no way that the offer can be considered fair. It cannot be justified as being in the shareholders’ interests. It does not mention that Aviva has its own small shareholder dealing service, for example. The gaps in shareholder...

My Lords, I will of course be happy to meet the noble Baroness. As I hope we are showing through the process on that Bill, we are trying to rightsize our regulation to ensure that it is appropriate.

I will not comment too much on this particular case. The CEO of...

My Lords, I will of course be happy to meet the noble Baroness. As I hope we are showing through the process on that Bill, we are trying to rightsize our regulation to ensure that it is appropriate.

I will not comment too much on this particular case. The CEO of...

My Lords, mini-tenders, even by firms otherwise authorised by the FCA, fall below the FCA’s regulatory threshold. In the future, can the Financial Ombudsman require remedy for an investor caught in a mini-tender bait and switch, or do the clauses in the new financial services Bill requiring the FOS to...

My Lords, mini-tenders, even by firms otherwise authorised by the FCA, fall below the FCA’s regulatory threshold. In the future, can the Financial Ombudsman require remedy for an investor caught in a mini-tender bait and switch, or do the clauses in the new financial services Bill requiring the FOS to...

The noble Baroness is correct, of course. Mini-tenders are not a distinct regulatory category. However, we believe that the activities associated with them currently fall within in the existing regulatory framework, including financial promotion rules and market abuse legislation. Where those communications are misleading, the regulator absolutely has to act....

The noble Baroness is correct, of course. Mini-tenders are not a distinct regulatory category. However, we believe that the activities associated with them currently fall within in the existing regulatory framework, including financial promotion rules and market abuse legislation. Where those communications are misleading, the regulator absolutely has to act....

My Lords, given that these mini-tender offers succeed precisely because some shareholders may not recognise that the price

they are being offered is well below market value, and because the offer may well be put to them using high-pressure sales techniques, can my noble friend the Minister give further consideration...

My Lords, given that these mini-tender offers succeed precisely because some shareholders may not recognise that the price

they are being offered is well below market value, and because the offer may well be put to them using high-pressure sales techniques, can my noble friend the Minister give further consideration...

My noble friend raises an important point about financial education and financial literacy more generally. Again, I am happy to write to him. There are a number of initiatives across government. We believe that this is an important issue. Shareholders benefit from strong protections under the law and the regulations...

My noble friend raises an important point about financial education and financial literacy more generally. Again, I am happy to write to him. There are a number of initiatives across government. We believe that this is an important issue. Shareholders benefit from strong protections under the law and the regulations...

Can the Minister tell us what the Treasury is doing to collect the stamp duty that should be chargeable on transactions where there is documentation executed in the United Kingdom, and whether looking at that might represent some method of providing a toolkit to defeat these bad practices?

Can the Minister tell us what the Treasury is doing to collect the stamp duty that should be chargeable on transactions where there is documentation executed in the United Kingdom, and whether looking at that might represent some method of providing a toolkit to defeat these bad practices?

The Digitisation Taskforce and the access to data have many benefits, not only on promotions but for the issuers of shares to understand where exactly the shareholders are on their cap tables. We hope that that increased awareness of where shareholders and those transactions are will be covered by the...

The Digitisation Taskforce and the access to data have many benefits, not only on promotions but for the issuers of shares to understand where exactly the shareholders are on their cap tables. We hope that that increased awareness of where shareholders and those transactions are will be covered by the...

My Lords, my noble friend has identified one category of vulnerable small shareholders. There is an increasing problem of scams, to which smaller shareholders are most at risk. What cyber security is being extended to that category of risk?

My Lords, my noble friend has identified one category of vulnerable small shareholders. There is an increasing problem of scams, to which smaller shareholders are most at risk. What cyber security is being extended to that category of risk?

I am sorry, what was the question?

I am sorry, what was the question?

Scams: fraudulent activity where people masquerade as a company wanting to buy back the shares—impersonation. Online shareholding accounts are particularly vulnerable to this type of activity.

Scams: fraudulent activity where people masquerade as a company wanting to buy back the shares—impersonation. Online shareholding accounts are particularly vulnerable to this type of activity.

Part of the FCA’s consumer duty is to ensure that consumers are well informed and protected. The Home Office has issued another policy on protection from particular scams. I am happy to

write to the noble Baroness with the specific duties. The FCA has a consumer duty overall and that...

Part of the FCA’s consumer duty is to ensure that consumers are well informed and protected. The Home Office has issued another policy on protection from particular scams. I am happy to

write to the noble Baroness with the specific duties. The FCA has a consumer duty overall and that...

My Lords, I agree with the Minister on the importance of financial literacy, as he knows, but we must ensure that the UK remains a global hub for private investment and capital. Can he confirm that the new Prime Minister will create a climate that helps and keeps businesses in...

My Lords, I agree with the Minister on the importance of financial literacy, as he knows, but we must ensure that the UK remains a global hub for private investment and capital. Can he confirm that the new Prime Minister will create a climate that helps and keeps businesses in...

I have become well aware of the noble Baroness’s interest in this issue. I am certainly not going to speak for a Prime Minister before he is appointed next week, but this really matters to this Government. My belief is that there will be a continuation of the strategy to...

I have become well aware of the noble Baroness’s interest in this issue. I am certainly not going to speak for a Prime Minister before he is appointed next week, but this really matters to this Government. My belief is that there will be a continuation of the strategy to...

I have one further question. There are at least two issues at stake. First, the data protection legislation forced Aviva to send all the names and addresses of its shareholders on its register, even though this company wished to write to only a very small subsection of them. That is...

I have one further question. There are at least two issues at stake. First, the data protection legislation forced Aviva to send all the names and addresses of its shareholders on its register, even though this company wished to write to only a very small subsection of them. That is...

The noble Baroness raises important points. There are two distinct answers to the question. On access to data, the courts have declared that a regulated entity, which any financial promotion has to go through, has to approve that offer and say whether it is for proper business or proper promotion....

The noble Baroness raises important points. There are two distinct answers to the question. On access to data, the courts have declared that a regulated entity, which any financial promotion has to go through, has to approve that offer and say whether it is for proper business or proper promotion....

To broaden the issue slightly to investors getting advice from AI apps, such as Gemini, ChatGPT and Claude, do these apps owe the client consumer duty?

To broaden the issue slightly to investors getting advice from AI apps, such as Gemini, ChatGPT and Claude, do these apps owe the client consumer duty?

I hope my noble friend saw the Chancellor’s Mansion House speech last night— I imagine everyone was glued to it at 9 pm, as I was. Very much part of what this Government and the FCA are trying to do is to ensure that we have the rightsized regulation for...

I hope my noble friend saw the Chancellor’s Mansion House speech last night— I imagine everyone was glued to it at 9 pm, as I was. Very much part of what this Government and the FCA are trying to do is to ensure that we have the rightsized regulation for...