The newly appointed Non-Banking Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA), chief executive officer (CEO) Oduetse Motshidisi says the ubiquitous contemporary challenges and economic uncertainties posed by the Covid19 pandemic provide unique backdrop against which to steer the regulatory authority and the Non-Bank Financial Institutions (NBFI) sector.
In an interview with Sunday Standard, Motshidisi stated that it is a challenge the financial regulator will respond to with greater agility, efficiency and effectiveness.
He said the regulatory authority is implementing its final year of its existing corporate strategy and will unveil its new Corporate Strategy 2021-2026 and the new strategic direction to stakeholders in due course.
Motshidisi believes what remains constant is that he will continue to promote good market conduct, consumer protection and strengthen the regulatory framework in an effort to contribute towards the domestic economy’s financial stability.
“It is important to regulate and supervise the NBFI sector with a mature understanding of the needs of the local market development in the context of emerging regional and international trends,” said Motshidisi.
Quizzed on the regulation becoming more complex by the day and as a regulatory entity faced with the challenges of moving with the times and keeping with new innovations, he stated that the regulatory authority is a member of several regional and international standard setting bodies and additionally has institutional partners.
He added that the regulatory authority’s association with these institutions make it privy to pertinent information on emerging trends in both opportunities and challenges pertaining the NBFI sector. He also spoke about providing avenues for access to tools and technical assistance that the regulatory authority may require in order to respond to the growing complexity and demands of the market with greater agility and efficiency.
“It should be noted that the level of noncompliance by the non-bank financial sector is not alarming and the regulator will keep up efforts to foster the highest degree of compliance at all times,” said Motshidisi.
He is of the view that regulation and market development have an interdependent relationship. Motshidisi said maintaining the balance between having a regulatory framework that protects the financial stability of the market while concurrently enabling a conducive environment for industry development evolves in response to the changing market expectations influenced by developments in innovation, customer expectations, regulatory environment and so on in the local and global NBFI landscape.
He further stated that the NBFIRA Act provides the Regulatory Authority with a variety of supervisory tools address issues of non-compliance. He added that these measures are implemented in a manner proportionate to the acts of non-compliance that occur. He said an enhanced programme of onsite and offsite monitoring will assist to address incidents of noncompliance in a timely manner.
“The process for the development of the medical aid legal framework is currently underway and stakeholders will be informed upon its finalization,” he stated.
Quizzed on the implementation of the separation between fund administration and funds to be attained, particularly for the largest funds, he stated that the separation of fund administration activity from funds is already underway adding NBFIRA closely monitors the position to ensure that all funds comply with the provisions of Retirement Fund Act of 2014 soon.
