GFSC suggests 'fairer' way to spread the cost of finance regulation

FINANCIAL services businesses could pay the price of regulation in a different way if the response is positive to a new idea from the Guernsey Financial Services Commission.

The commission has already pledged to cap its annual increase in fees at 2% for the next three years.

Now it is suggesting to industry that it either increases fees across the board by 1.25% or it makes significant increases to what it calls 'anomalies', and raises most annual and application fees by 0.3%, with the intent of keeping aggregate fee income next year at this year's levels. It prefers the latter option.

'These consultation proposals seek to make fees fairer for firms in different sectors and also honour our commitment not to raise aggregate fee income by more than 2% in 2014,' said director-general William Mason, pictured.