Transaction cost disclousre in DC workplace pensions
Since April 2015, the governance bodies of defined contribution workplace pensions have been required to seek to obtain information on charges and transaction costs and explain the extent to which they offer good value for members.
Since January 2018, asset managers have been required to respond to requests for such information about costs and take reasonable steps to provide:
- information about transaction costs calculated according to the ‘slippage cost’ methodology;
- information about administration charges; and
- appropriate contextual information.
These rules form part of the FCA handbook (COBS 19.8) and were first published as part of policy statement PS17/20.
The FCA slippage cost methodology is based on the concept that underpins one of the two methodologies for calculating transaction costs for products subject to the Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Products (PRIIPs) Regulation. However, there are a number of technical differences in the detail.
In February 2018 the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) made rules and guidance requiring trustees to make costs and charges information relating to defined contribution occupational pension schemes publicly available on a website for scheme years ending on or after 6 April 2018.
In February 2020 the FCA made rules requiring governance bodies to make costs and charges information relating to workplace personal pension schemes publicly available on a website for calendar years. In the first year - 2020 - the information was required only for default options.
