Die Qualifikationsanforderung an Anlageberater

In recent years, the poor quality of investment advice was regularly disclosed. Since 1st November 2011, a regulatory provision concerning the qualification of investment advisers has countered this problem. The adequate level of knowledge and reliability of the investment adviser is required by § 34d Par. 1 S. 1 WpHG, and the WpHGMaAnzV. § 34d Par. 4 WpHG provides the BaFin with a new sanctioning power.

The paper precisely defines the relevant provisions and discusses their legality. The need for regulation is primarily based on economic reasoning: information asymmetry allows opportunistic behavior of the investment adviser.

Therefore, adhering to the principal-agent theory, the paper analyses the qualification requirement and examines regulatory approaches de lege ferenda under an economic and legal perspective. Thereby, relevant provisions of the Trade Regulation Act (GewO) and the British Financial Conduct Authority are considered.