The Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) published its 2025 sector overview of financial service providers, drawing on supervisory work, discussions with advisers and data from the Market Monitor Advisers and Intermediaries (MMAB). The update is framed around “trust and responsibility”, linking trust in the sector to firms’ responsibility for customers, their own operations and their role in the distribution chain, while also emphasising the importance of confidence in the AFM’s role and actions. The AFM reports that the sector is shrinking in the number of licence holders but growing in scale, with larger firms (more than 25 full-time equivalents) taking an increasing market share and continuing to face challenges in attracting and retaining competent staff. It reiterates expectations for controlled and ethical business operations, including the set-up of compliance and safeguarding customers’ interests, and highlights specific attention on collective licence holders and their responsibilities for affiliated firms. Mortgage fraud remains a continuing integrity risk, with the AFM maintaining its focus on effectively addressing notifications related to mortgage fraud. The AFM also plans to intensify dialogue with the market to improve mutual understanding and sharpen risk assessments.

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