On 1st of September 2022, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) of Seychelles has issued its final Business Continuity Plan (‘BCP’) guidelines aiming to provide guidance to the regulated entities and licensees in creating and submitting their BCP to the FSA, as and when required.
The BCP guidelines are applicable to all licensees listed below and as per their respective legislation:
- All licensees under the International Corporate Service Providers Act, 2003
- Insurance Companies under the Insurance Act, 2008
- Insurance Brokers under the Insurance Act, 2008
- All licensees under the Securities Act, 2007
- Fund Administrator under the Mutual Fund and Hedge Fund Act, 2008
The FSA notes that licensees should incorporate business continuity considerations into their business process development to proactively mitigate the risk of service disruptions. In creating an effective BCP, the licensees should assume a reduced demand for services during any disruption and identify means to counteract the identified items or any other situations that may arise.
In addition, the FSA understands that each firm has its own organisational and legal structure thus, significant differences might arise when considering the nature and scope of the business activities conducted. In this respect, the FSA notes that the licensees might be impacted differently depending on their location and nature of their business, hence, there could be various approaches to business continuity planning. Furthermore, the implementation and practical aspect may evolve over time depending on various situations that may arise.
Further to the above, the FSA considers the below as key points in business continuity planning for the consideration of the licensees:
- Planning, testing, and reviewing;
- Focusing on critical operations;
- Considering special circumstance under large scale disruptions;
- Coordinating business continuity planning with outside parties;
- Exerting strong leadership.
The BCP Guidelines include amongst others, guidance on the structure and components of the BCP, risk assessment, business impact analysis, responsibilities of the board of directors / senior management and relevant appendices advising on the key components to be included in the BCP and other important considerations.
Our team of experts can assist you in implementing and updating your Business Continuity Plan according to the latest regulatory updates.