FI has been receiving complaints from consumers in Sweden about four foreign investment firms. The foreign supervisory authorities who are responsible for the supervision of these companies have been notified about the complaints.
Six out of ten say that sustainability is important when saving money. Advisors at banks, investment firms and insurance intermediaries have an obligation to take into account consumers’ sustainability preferences. This does not always happen. Instead, many consumers currently face a risk of investing in products that do not correspond to their expectations when it comes to sustainability. This is the conclusion FI draws from its analysis, and we are now encouraging firms to devote a special focus to this topic.
The study confirms previous results showing that women are underrepresented in the stock market. The differences arise as early as three years of age, which shows that adults more often buy stocks for boys than for girls. We also see that men generally have larger stock portfolios than women throughout life, although women increase their stock wealth later in life.
Today, almost all households invest in funds, either directly through private savings or indirectly through our pensions. However, close to one third of fund savers are unaware of how high the fund fee is and many risk paying too much for their savings. We are, therefore, now publishing the most common fees for some popular fund categories to help consumers monitor what certain funds cost.
The risks given the highest priority in FI’s consumer protection work for 2023 are unaffordable lending, unsuitable investment products and investment fraud.
Digitalisation introduces both opportunities and risks to the financial market. After conducting a new survey, FI has noted that broader regulation on how customer data can be shared with third-party providers could make it easier for consumers to compare financial products such as occupational pensions and mortgages.
SIP Nordic Fondkommission AB (SIP Nordic) is receiving a warning and must pay an administrative fine of SEK 6.7 million.
Celina Fondförvaltning AB (Celina) is receiving a warning and must pay an administrative fine of SEK 10 million.