Client Complaint Handling Procedure
1. Introduction
Following the implementation of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive 2014/65/EU (“MiFID II”) and in accordance to the provisions of the Financial Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law of 2017 (the “Law”) of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (“CySEC”), TF Global Markets (Europe) Ltd (hereinafter, the “Company” or “ThinkMarkets”) is required to establish, implement and maintain effective and transparent procedures for the reasonable and prompt handling of complaints received from each Complainant, and to keep a record of each complaint and the measures/actions taken for the complaint’s resolution (hereafter the “Procedure”).
2. Definitions
A complaint, is a statement of dissatisfaction addressed to the Company, as indicated in the Procedure, by a natural or a legal person (the Complainant) in relation to one or more of the investment services provided by the Company.
A Complainant is any person, natural or legal person, eligible to submit a complaint to the Company, and who has submitted an official complaint according to this Procedure.
A query is any question submitted to the Company via Email, Live Chat, or telephone and is related to the services provided by the Company. In the case that the Company receives a notice by the set communication methods established to receive complaints, but which does not fall under the definition of ‘complaint’ as described above and may be characterized as a query, then it will be categorised as a query and forwarded to the relevant department which will handle the query accordingly. However, in the case that the Complainant is not satisfied with the response received for the particular ‘query’ then he/she maintains the right to request the re-classification of his/her query as a complaint provided that the Complaints Form is completed and submitted in accordance with the Procedure.A complaint, is a statement of dissatisfaction addressed to the Company, as indicated in the Procedure, by a natural or a legal person (the Complainant) in relation to one or more of the investment services provided by the Company.
3. Procedure
The Complainant may submit his/her complaint in writing and addressed to the Compliance Function of the Company who is authorized to handle and investigate complaints that may be submitted to them from the Complainant. The Compliance Function shall efficiently handle any complaint received by the Complainants. In case that the complaint involves the Compliance Function, the complaint shall be handled by a member of the Senior Management.
Submitting your Complaint
The complaints must be directed by the Complainant to the Company’s Compliance Function by filling out the relevant Complaints form and submit to the Company via any of the following methods:
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By submitting the Complaints Form electronically at the following email address: [email protected];
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By post or in person at the Company’s Cyprus Headquarters.
In case the Company receives a notice through the line of communication established by the Company to receive complaints, but which does not fall within the definition of 'complaint' above and can be characterized as a query; this shall be categorized as a query rather than a complaint and will be forwarded to the relevant department to be handled accordingly.The complaints must be directed by the Complainant to the Company’s Compliance Function by filling out the relevant Complaints form and submit to the Company via any of the following methods:
Acknowledgement and Handling of the Complaint
The Compliance Function shall follow the procedure as described below when handling complaints:
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Once the complainant files a complaint, an electronic acknowledgement of receipt will be sent to the email address, within five (5) business days of the complainant to ensure that the Company has received the complaint and is currently working on a resolution. The Company should also provide to the complainant via this email; a reference number of the complaint for future reference. The unique reference number should be used in all the future contact with the Company, the Financial Ombudsman and/or CySEC regarding the specific complaint.
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The Company shall make every effort to investigate the complaint and provide to the Complainant with the outcome of the investigation within two (2) months from the date the Client has submitted the complaint to the Company. During the investigation process, the Company shall keep the Complainant updated of the handling process of the complaint. The Company’s relevant employee may contact the Complainant directly (including communication by email or phone) in order to obtain further clarifications (where needed) and information relating to the complaint.
It shall be noted that the Company shall consider the complaint as closed and cease the relevant investigation in case the Complaint fails to respond to the Company’s relevant employee within the period of three (3) months from the date of the submission of the complaint.
The Company shall require full cooperation in order to expedite the investigation and possible resolution of the complaint .
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When deemed necessary, the Compliance Function shall submit to the Senior Management the aforementioned details, for further investigation. The Senior Management shall investigate further and coordinate with relevant heads of departments to attend to the subject of the complaint.
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In the event that the complaint requires further investigation and the Company is not in a position to resolve it within two (2) months, the Company will issue a holding response in writing or another durable medium. When a holding response is sent, it will indicate the causes of the delay and when the Company’s investigation is likely to be completed. In any event, the Company shall provide the Complainant with the outcome of the investigation no later than one (1) month from the issuing of the holding response, depending on the complexity of the case and the Complainant’s cooperation.
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The Company upon examining the complaint and upon reaching a decision in this respect, shall reply to the Complainant with the remedial actions to be taken or provide further clarifications, and the reasoning behind the Company’s decision, as applicable.
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The Company shall document and keep in its records the following information:
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the identity of the complainant who filed the complaint;
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the name of the employee who undertook to provide the service to the complainant;
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the date of receipt of complaint/enquiry
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the subject and full description of the complaint/enquiry
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the remedial action taken and/ or further clarifications provided to the complainant
It shall be noted that the Company provides to its employees timely and effective training and education on how to handle complaints. In case that employees do not follow the procedures, disciplinary measures (depending on the situation and on a case by case basis, e.g. a warning which could lead up to a dismissal) could be taken and enforced.
Final Decision
In case the final decision does not satisfy the Complainant’s demands, the latter may maintain the complaint through the Financial Ombudsman of the Republic of Cyprus, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (the ‘CySEC’) or the relevant courts and seek mediation for possible compensation.
It is important that the Complainant contacts the Financial Ombudsman of the Republic of Cyprus within four (4) months of receiving a final response from the Company otherwise the Financial Ombudsman of the Republic of Cyprus may not be able to deal with the complaint. Further information as to the procedure the Complaint needs to follow can be found on CySEC’s website here.
In the unlikely event that the Company was unable to provide to the Complainant with a final response within the pre-defined time period specified above, the Complainant may again contact the office of the Financial Ombudsman of the Republic of Cyprus no later than four (4) months after the date when the Company ought to have provided to the Complainant with the final decision.
Contact Details of the Financial Ombudsman of the Republic of Cyprus:
Website: http://www.financialombudsman.gov.cy
Email: [email protected]
Postal Address: P.O. BOX: 25735, 1311 Nicosia, Cyprus
Telephone: +35722848900 [email protected]
Fax: +35722660584, +35722660118
Contact Details of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission:
Website: http://www.cysec.gov.cy
General email: [email protected]
Office Address: 19 Diagorou Str. CY-1097 Nicosia
Postal Address: P.O. BOX 24996, 1306 Nicosia, Cyprus
Telephone: +35722506600
Fax: +35722506700
The Complainant may maintain the complaint with the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission. However please note that the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission does not have restitution powers and therefore does not investigate individual complaints. It is understood that the Complainant’s right to take legal action remains unaffected by the existence or use of any complaints procedures referred to above.
4. Complaints Monitoring
The Company is analysing on an on-going basis, complaints-handling data, to ensure that it identifies and addresses any recurring or systemic problems. Specifically, the monitoring process includes, inter-alia:
Moreover, the Company’s responsible person to oversee the complaints procedure is the appointed Compliance Officer.
5. Reporting and Record Keeping
All decisions related to complaints shall be communicated to Complainants in writing and copies shall be retained by the Compliance Function.
All the documentation related to complaints shall be maintained for a period of at least five (5) years calculated after the execution of the complaint and/or termination of the business relationship with the Client.
COMPLAINTS FORM
Please download the Complaints policy PDF here. This includes the form the Complainant needs to fill in if he/she wishes to submit a complaint to the Company.
Please note that complete, up-to-date as well as accurate information is required to be provided to the Company for the proper investigation and evaluation of the complaint. The Complaints Form is only indicative and not exhaustive. The Company may request further information and/or clarifications and/or evidence as regards the complaint.
Download client complaint handling procedure PDF