Financial Consumer Protection (FCP) Division

Mandate

The FCP Division was established in 2018 with the main objective of protecting the financial consumers from unfair, deceptive or abusive practices and taking action against Financial Services Providers (FSP’s) licensed by the Central Bank that violate the financial consumer principles. The Division is responsible for supervising market conduct issues via on-site and off-site examinations (transparency and disclosure), complaints handling and redress, developing policy and legal framework for the protection of financial consumers, and engaging in financial education and literacy campaigns. The Unit supervises all financial institutions under the purview of the Central Bank of Lesotho.

a) The functions of the Division include:

1. On-site examination and off-site monitoring of financial consumer protection and market conduct issues;
2. Maintaining consumer confidence and trust in the financial system;
3. Monitors financial consumer complaints handled by all players in the financial sector including but not limited to banks, insurance companies and their intermediaries, microfinance institutions, money transfer companies as well as the credit bureau;
4. Investigates and facilitates the resolution of complaints lodged to the Central Bank when internal mechanisms of banks and other financial institutions had been exhausted;
5. Participate and contribute to financial inclusion initiatives;
6. Participate and contribute to financial education and literacy initiatives;
7. Carry on thematic research on issues which impact financial consumers; and
8. Develop regulatory and supervisory frameworks for the promotion of proper market conduct for regulated financial services producers.