What does the TTF do?

We run thought leadership events, called Transparency Symposia. The overall purpose of our Transparency Symposia is to ‘win hearts and minds’ to galvanise support for the idea that there ought to be greater transparency in financial services. They work extremely well for us.

You can access all our previous events here. Our first was the Transparency Symposium held in London at Dimensional Fund Advisors’ London office, on 7^th October 2015. Our last was at Mercer’s Boston office, held on 28^th September 2017. Moving forward we are working towards running 2 Transparency Symposia a month; one in London and one overseas at other major financial centres around the world.

Each Transparency Symposium typically has between 40 to 80 people in attendance, a cracking line-up of speakers including thought leaders, enlightened market participants, subject-matter experts, academics, the leaders of closely-aligned advocacy groups, regulators and politicians.

Our events are well known for being highly participative with lots of candid discussion and debate. They are often deliberately challenging and edgy; but are always constructive and never just a ‘whinge-fest’. Our Transparency Symposia are a great way to define and share best practice and are characterised by engaging presentations, panel sessions and debates. Furthermore, they are an excellent way for people to learn about the work of the Transparency Task Force; that’s extremely important because many of the volunteers in our 12 Teams were motivated to get involved as a consequence of attending a Transparency Symposium.

Our events always attract a great deal of interest from the media and we have had great press coverage; not just amongst the financial services trade magazines – our work has even been written about in most of the main national newspapers and we have even appeared on the front page of the Financial Times; more on that later.

The Transparency Trophy is a top-quality transparent star, awarded to a winner at each of our Transparency Symposia. Winners get to keep their Transparency Trophy. The star-shape is significant. People can navigate across seas using the stars so the star shape has been chosen to symbolise the idea that the winners are helping to navigate the industry towards a more transparent, competitive and enlightened state.

Here are the very worthy winners, so far:

 – February 2016: Tomas Wijffels, Senior Policy Advisor, Pensioen Federatie

 – April 2016: Rachel Haworth, Senior Policy Officer, ShareAction

 – June 2016: Jackie Beard, Director of Manager Research for EMEA, Morningstar

 – September 2016: Gina & Alan Miller, the Founders of the True & Fair Campaign

 – October 2016: Robin Powell, Principal, Evidence-Based Investor

 – November 2016: Daniel Godfrey, former Chief Executive of the Investment Association and now Co-Founder of The People’s Trust

 – December 2016: Ralph Frank, Co-Head of Defined Contribution, Cardano

 – February 2017: Con Keating, Head of Research, Brighton Rock Group

 – May 2017: David Pitt-Watson, Executive Fellow, London Business School

 – July 2017: Mike Barrett, Consulting Director, the Lang Cat

– September 13th 2017: Steve Conley, Founder, The Values-Based Adviser

 – September 28th 2017; George Kinder, Founder, The Kinder Institute

The TTF has attracted over 2500 volunteers who have been organised and mobilised into 15 teams. They are very much the ‘engine room’ of our campaigning activity and are for ethically and professionally-minded people who believe that those of us who truly care about the importance of the Financial Services sector and the people it serves can, and should, work together to help put things right.

The TTF Teams are a manifestation of the wisdom within the famous Margaret Mead quote: 

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”.

Our volunteers are a consensus-building ‘coalition of the willing’, working together to be ‘part of the solution’. Each team is focused on a particular set of transparency-related issues and desired outcomes.

Here’s a list of the Teams:

 – General Introduction Team

 – Governance, Culture and Conduct

 – Financial Stability

 – Trade Bodies & Professionals Association 

 – Authentic Communications

 – Fintech, Interoperability and Open Finance

 – Financial Planning

 – Constructive Disruptors

 – Malpractice, Malfeasance, Misconduct and Mis-selling

 – Pensions

 – PISCES

 – Leadership

– Investments

– Foreign Exchange and Payments

– Banks and Building Societies

The Teams are not just ‘talking-shops’ or a ‘whinge-fests’ – they pragmatically undertaking work that can, will and already has made a difference.

We are proud that over 2500 people have responded positively to our clarion call for help by becoming active agents for change within our collaborative, campaigning community.

Each Team has at least one campaign project underway, designed to harness the transformational power of transparency to drive the much-needed change that the consumer deserves and the reputation of the Sector needs. All Teams have a monthly conference call to discuss objectives and strategy to implement.

Very importantly, in addition to our 2500+ volunteers the TTF Teams have over 30 individuals involved as observers from several UK government and regulatory departments including people at:

 – The Department for Work and Pensions

 – The Financial Conduct Authority

 – The Pensions Regulator

 – The Competition & Markets Authority

 – The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy

 – The Financial Reporting Council

 – The Government Actuarial Department

 – The Money Advice Service

 – These important organisations are kept abreast of developments.

We are continuously campaigning to gather Transparency Statements. Transparency Statements are a great way for people to show support for our cause and to align them and their organisations with our objective to encourage greater transparency in financial services, right around the world. 

Transparency Statements always begin with the words:

 “I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because…”

…and are completed in whatever way the individual wants to expresses their point of view.

Here are a few great examples, from many:

Madison Marriage

Asset Management Correspondent | Financial Times

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because people need to be able to trust those responsible for managing their money.”

Tom Tugendhat MBE MP

Member of Parliament for Tonbridge and Malling            

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because it is the only way that markets can function without distortion to the benefit of the true customer, the 

individual.”

Helena Morrissey

Former Chair | The Investment Association      

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because it’s the very starting point for establishing trust.”

Dr. Kara Tan Bhala 

President and Founder | Seven Pillars Institute for Global Finance and Ethics   

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because transparency is a pro-ethical condition that enables us to fulfil our fiduciary duty and to achieve justice and the common good. Assiduous transparency yields continuous trust.”

Angela Rayner

Former Shadow Pensions Minister, now Shadow Secretary of State for Education

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because pension funds should be run with a constant eye on efficiency – every penny should be accounted for therefore costs must be transparent and easy to understand – they must be explainable without jargon. The duty is to pay pensions and ensure that the sponsoring employers enjoy the benefits of reduced costs, we must avoid funds entering the Pension Protection Fund, it should be the last option.”

William Goodhart

Chief Executive | CFA Society of the UK

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because it contributes to the establishment of trust which can improve consumer outcomes. To date, the focus has been on costs and performance, but the investment profession and its stakeholders would also benefit from an improved understanding of the purpose of investment and from the processes employed on their behalf.”

John Greenwood

Editor | Corporate Advisor

 “I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because opacity is to journalists what a red rag is to a bull. As long as things are hidden, trust in the industry will remain low.”

Andy Agathangelou

Founding Chair | Transparency Task Force

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because it holds the key to regaining the trust of the consumer, delivering value-for-money and operating a competitive market”.

Henry Tapper 

Director, First Actuarial & Founder | Pension PlayPen

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because people want to know what they’re buying. We cannot be trusted. Our system depends on trust and fiduciaries managing our money. Until people consider themselves investing in a trustworthy way we will remain untrusted. Transparency is the only way to break this vicious circle.”

Margaret Snowdon OBE

Chairman | Pensions Administration Standards Association

“I believe there ought to be higher levels of transparency in financial services because it is the best way we can restore public trust in pensions.”

The Transparency Times is our free monthly online magazine, now produced with kind support from The Lang Cat which has taken it ‘to the next level’. The very first issue was published in May 2016.

It contains thought leadership articles on a wide range of subjects from a broad range of authors including academics, progressive market participants, politicians, aligned campaigners, representatives of civil society groups and so on.

The overall message delivered is about how the transformational power of transparency can be a force for good in getting the Financial Services Sector to provide the best possible outcomes to those it serves. 

Articles are often edgy and challenging because our contributors are free to ‘tell it as they see it’. Because of the unique nature of the Transparency Task Force we are completely free of the commercial influences that can contaminate the editorial decisions made by other publishers. The significance of that point really shouldn’t be under-appreciated, given how enormously influential the commercial interests and conflicts of interest in the financial services sector are.

Quite rightly, the Transparency Times is developing a reputation as a courageous and hard-hitting voice of reason, shining a light on contentious topics that might otherwise never see the light of day. We are very deliberately using the Transparency Times as a very powerful and very bright light, shining into the sometimes damp, squalid, dark and dingy shadows within the nooks and crannies of the financial services sector.

In line with our stated mission we are exposing opacity wherever it occurs, knowing that by doing so we enable the magical curative characteristics of the ‘Sunlight is the Best Disinfectant” dynamic to ‘do its thing’.

The Transparency Times already goes to over 6,000 people and circulation is increasing all the time. Its readers are not just in the UK, they are also in:

• Australia
• Belgium
• Brazil
• Canada
• Chile
• Denmark
• Dubai
• France
• Germany
• Holland
• Ireland
• New Zealand
• Spain
• Sweden
• USA

The Transparency Times is absolutely crucial to achieving our objectives on a global basis – we have a vision to drive up circulation to over 1,000,000 people.

The Transparency Task force has formally responded to:

 – The Pension Regulator’s Consultation Paper on The 21^st Century Trustee

 – The Financial Conduct Authority’s Consultation Paper on Transaction Costs in Workplace Pensions

 – The Financial Conduct Authority’s Asset Management Market Study

 – The Investment Association’s Costs Disclosure Code

 – The Global FX Code

– The European Union’s Consultation on Sustainable Finance

Our responses are produced in a unique way – once we decide that we wish to formally respond to a Consultation Paper we reach out to members of our Teams that are relevant to the topic, seeking volunteers to form a Response Team and work together in a collaborative, collegiate and co-operative way. Volunteers are very often subject-matter experts with valuable insight and experience. 

Furthermore, we know that the TTF is rather unique in being ‘tribe-less’ i.e. we do not simply represent the commercial agenda of a particular organization or the perspective of a particular trade body or professional association. We’re way beyond that and therefore tend to provide a Consultation Response that is truly consensus-based, pragmatic, mainstream and free of extreme views in any direction.

We believe our consensus-based views are recognised as being free of commercial and political influence and our collective voice is therefore given the respect it deserves.

Interestingly, if ever there is disagreement amongst the Response Team the issue is always easily resolved with what we call the ‘North Star question’ that guides all our work.

Here’s our ‘North Star question’:

“Taking everything into account, what’s best for the consumer?”

It’s a wonderfully powerful question that has always provided swift direction and consensus; and helped to nip potentially harmful division ‘in the bud’. It’s a clever question because it is difficult to defend a position that is not aligned with what is best for the consumer. We find ourselves having to ask that question less and less, because everybody in our community understands that all our work including all our Consultation Responses are aligned to what’s best for the consumer.

Logically, people with an agenda that is different to promoting what is best for the consumer tend not to volunteer to be part of our Response Teams, so it’s a self-sorting approach.

Thus far, the Transparency Task Force has produced three significant Thought Leadership White Papers:

Firstly, our Costs & Charges Team produced a White Paper all about the costs and charges (including hidden costs and charges) that impact investors including pension savers. It was presented at a special meeting held in London on 1^st July 2016, to over 40 people including senior representatives of:

 – The Department for Work and Pensions

 – The Financial Conduct Authority

 – The Pensions Regulator

 – The Association of Member-Nominated Trustees

 – Her Majesty’s Treasury

 – ShareAction

 – UNISON

 – The London Business School

 – The Pensions Management Institute

 – The True & Fair Campaign

 – The Investment Association

 – Morningstar

 – The ABI

 – The Pensions Advisory Service

 – The Financial Services Consumer Panel

The White Paper and the extensive ground-breaking Primary Research that supported it (that took more than a year to complete) was so impactful that it made the front page of the Financial Times. We believe its content may have been noticed by Regulators.

Furthermore, the content of the White Paper formed the basis of a very special meeting entitled “The First Transparency Strategy Summit in the World” which was held at The House of Commons on 12th September 2016. The Summit was a Transparency Task force event, Co-Chaired between Tom Tugendhat MBE MP (the Conservative Member of Parliament for Tonbridge and Malling) and Andy Agathangelou, TTF’s Founding Chair.

The meeting had a specific primary purpose:

“The primary purpose of the first Transparency Strategy Summit in the world is to begin to build consensus on the best way to protect the interests of the UK’s pensions-saving public through full disclosure on all the costs and charges they are paying but not being told about”.

The meeting was highly successful and led to significant dialogue with Regulators, Parliamentarians, Trade Bodies and Professional Associations. It also led to the TTF producing a successful Open Letter to Frank Field MP, the highly respected Chair of the Work & Pensions Select Committee. The letter highlighted the issue of hidden costs and charges adversely impacting pension savers.

Secondly, our Banking Team produced a White Paper entitled “Free if in credit: mis(ing) information” all about the TTF’s reform proposals to encourage the Banks to present information about their accounts in a more transparent way, particularly in relation to costs and charges when customers fall into unauthorised overdraft. The White Paper was presented at a special Transparency Task Force meeting held at the House of Commons on 26^th June 2016. The meeting was Co-Chaired by Lord Cromwell and Andy Agathangelou, Founding Chair of the Transparency Task Force.

The audience was made up of significant influencers and decision-makers from relevant organisation including:

 – The Banking Standards Board

 – The Joseph Rowntree Foundation

 – The Nationwide Building Society

 – The Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation

 – The Community Savings Bank Association,

 – Responsible Finance

 – The Financial Inclusion Commission

 – The Advertising Association

 – Barclays Bank

 – The Royal Bank of Scotland

 – ShareSoc

 – The Financial Conduct Authority

 – The Group of Experts on Risk Management in Regulatory Systems

 – Greater London Mutual

 – The All Party Parliamentary Group on Fair Business Banking

 – The Fair Banking Foundation

 – The British Bankers Association

 – Starling Bank

 – The Federation of Small Business

 – Triodos Bank

 – The Competition & Markets Authority

 – Specialist Banking Magazine

The event was covered by The Times and has initiated worthwhile dialogue with the Chairmen of major Banks amongst others.

Thirdly, our Foreign Exchange Team produced a White Paper entitled “Defining what Transparency Means in the Wholesale Global FX Market”, a hard-hitting critique of the shortcomings of the Global FX Code, which is a worthwhile step in the right direction but disappoints significantly compared to the potential it had to drive true transparency into the terribly opaque FX market.

The White Paper drew acknowledgement and a published response from both Dr. Andrea Coscelli, Chief Executive of the Competition & Markets Authority and also Stephen Barclay MP, Economic Secretary to The Treasury.

As part of our campaigning activity we have held numerous meetings with government-related individuals including senior representatives at The Financial Conduct Authority, The Department for Work & Pensions and The Competition & Markets Authority.

We have also held a meeting with The Pensions Minister.

Furthermore, the TTD has ongoing dialogue with several Members of Parliament from all the major political parties. Please note that The Transparency Task Force is not politically-aligned.

These meetings have all been been great opportunities for us to articulate our view that much greater transparency is needed in the financial services sector. We have always felt listened to. In keeping with the TTF approach we are always collegiate and constructive – always proposing pragmatic solutions to the problems we have identified.

We have worked hard to develop first class relationships with key media channels.

The net result has been phenomenal coverage for our various campaign initiatives.

We have had coverage in National Newspapers including The Financial Times, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, The Sun and The Daily Mirror.

We have had extensive and regular coverage in all the main trade magazines and journals for whom we have become the go-to-source for comment on transparency-related issues. We have appeared in Professional Pensions, Pensions Expert, Money Marketing, Financial Adviser, Corporate Adviser, Engaged Investor, Portfolio Adviser, Pensions & Investments, Euromoney, Pensions World, Financial News, Responsible Investor, Pensions Age, CityWire, Ftfm, IPE and Which?, the consumer magazine.

Furthermore, we have been interviewed twice on BBC Radio 4; once on the ‘You and Yours’ programme and once on ‘Moneybox’; both as a result if our ground-breaking research on costs and charges in pensions and investment, including hidden costs.

For an organisation without any resource whatsoever and without anybody working for us in a press or PR capacity we are rightly pleased with the coverage we get.

Andy Agathangelou, The Founding Chair of the Transparency Task Force is routinely asked to speak at all the major financial services conferences in the UK, run by the major financial services publications and also the main Trade Bodies and Professional Associations.

Andy has even spoken overseas, at Fund Forum Asia, held in Hong Kong (as well as at our own Transparency Symposium held in Boston on 28^th September 2016)

These speaking engagements provide tremendous publicity for the cause and no doubt are helping to positively shift industry expectations around the need for greater transparency. 

In addition, Andy attends many industry events and always seizes the opportunity to make points and ask questions that help to raise awareness of our work.

Our Ambassadors individuals who are particularly well aligned to the overall purpose and mission of the Transparency Task Force, and have agreed to do what they can, when they can, to further the cause for greater transparency in financial services.

They are true professionals; people who have accepted the responsibility of standing up for the cause for greater transparency in financial services when they can, however they can. 

Furthermore, Ambassadors can provide support and leadership in many useful ways; for example, as a sounding board, as wise counsel, by providing constructive challenge, as a mentor and through the on-going development of TTF’s overall strategy.

We are rightly proud of and extremely grateful to our Ambassadors:

UK:

 – David Pitt-Watson, Executive Fellow, The London Business School

 – Catherine Howarth, Chief Executive Officer, ShareAction,

 – Daniel Godfrey Former Chief Executive of the Investment Association and Founder, The People’s Trust

 – Jackie Beard, Director of Manager Research Services for EMEA, Morningstar

 – Con Keating, Head of Research, Brighton Rock Group

– Dr. Anna Tilba, Lecturer in Strategy & Corporate Governance and Director of Corporate Engagement, Newcastle University Business School

 – Ralph Frank, Co-Head of Defined Contribution, Cardano

 – Markus Krebsz, The Group of Experts on Risk Management in Regulatory Systems

 – JB Beckett, UK Director, Association of Professional Fund Investors,

 – Robin Powell, Founder, The Evidence Based Investor,

 – Steve Conley, Founder & CEO, Values Based Adviser,

USA:

 – Paul M. Secunda, Professor of Law and Director, Labor and Employment Law, Marquette University Law School,

 – Bernie Nelson, President for North America, Style Research

 – Dr. Kara Tan Bhala, President and Founder, Seven Pillars Institute for Global Finance and Ethics

 – Matthew Murray,  Co-founder, The Center for Business Ethics and Corporate Governance

 – George Kinder, Founder, The Kinder Institute of Life Planning

 – Stephen Davis, Associate Director and Senior Fellow,

Programs on Corporate Governance and Institutional Investors, Harvard Law School

– Jon Lukomnik, Executive Director, Investor Responsibility Research Institute

AUSTRALIA:

 – Ian Fryer, Head of Research, Chant West.

We aim to have 100 Ambassadors around the world

Clearly, the more people we are able to communicate with the greater influence we can have. We therefore spend a great deal of time and effort continuously growing our audience and our community through word of mouth, online research, introductions, networking at events and so on.

Also, we are able to make great use of social media platforms as an efficient and cost-effective way to grow our sphere of influence.