Client Assets sourcebook (CASS) medium and large firms have to complete a Client Money and Assets Return (CMAR) each month. Read more on how to submit a CMAR.
The CMAR gives us an overview of your firm’s client money and safe custody assets (client assets) positions and holdings, as well as a view of the trends in the industry. This enables us to make regulatory interventions in relation to client assets on a timely, firm-specific or thematic basis.
The information you include in the CMAR will be of interest to the CF10a (CASS oversight operation function) or SMF18 and your board, and it should help the firm understand its own CASS position.
The CMAR will not apply to firms who only hold client money for general insurance distribution activity (CASS 5[1]: client money: insurance distribution activity). For money held for general insurance distribution activity, firms will need to complete either a Retail Mediation Activities Return (RMAR) section C or FSA039 depending on their permissions.
For a copy of the questions we ask in the CMAR and the accompanying guidance, please refer to SUP 16.14[2] and SUP 16 Annex 29[3].
Completing a CMAR
You should submit your CMAR within 15 business days of the end-date of the reporting period, and you can only enter data from that reporting period end-date, that is, the first day of the next calendar month.
For example, for an October 2014 return, data can be entered from 1 November 2014 and the return must be submitted by 21 November 2014.
Each month your firm’s principal Gabriel[4] user will receive email reminders 8 and 3 days before the submission deadline. However, it is still the responsibility of your CF10a or SMF18 to ensure the form is fully and accurately completed and submitted by the monthly deadline.
Get help on CMAR
Our CMAR help page[5] includes guidance on how to complete the CMAR.