Definition
Conflict of Interest Policy is conducted pursuant to, and in compliance with, the European Union Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (“MiFID”) (Directive 2004/39/EC). This Policy is drafted in accordance to the requirements of the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) relating to the handling of conflicts of interest. This Conflicts of Interest Policy, as amended from time to time, adhered to by Kerford Investments UK Limited (Kerford UK or The firm), forms part of the Client Agreement and Terms of Business. It is, therefore, very much in your interest to read it carefully.
Identification and Purpose
Kerford UK takes responsibility for identifying and managing conflicts of interest arising in its business which may constitute a material risk or damage to its customers’ interest. The firm has considered some of the potential conflicts of interest arising out of the execution of foreign exchange transactions with its customers under FCA rules. The firm is required to take all reasonable steps to identify conflicts of interest between its directors, managers, employees and affiliates whether directly or indirectly linked to the firm and its clients.
Kerford Investments (UK) Limited does not undertake any proprietary trading. Therefore, the main conflicts of interests which may arise in the conduct of its business are potential conflicts of interest between a customer of Kerford UK and one of its other clients and its duties to other clients. The Conflict of Interest Policy was therefore put into place to highlight the measures which are undertaken by Kerford UK to ensure that any actual and perceived conflicts of interest are effectively managed, as detailed below in this Policy.
Policy
The following measures have been adopted by Kerford UK in relation to conflicts of interest:
- When the firm executes an order for any client, it shall not provide any preferential treatment to any client that results in the detriment of any other client;
- The firm maintains operational procedures to manage actual or potential conflicts. This includes procedures to maintain an appropriate degree of independence between members of the firm’s staff who are involved in separate activities. This is effectively implemented through the operation of information barriers, physical separation of staff and the segregation of duties and responsibilities.
- The firm has established internal rules for keeping and protecting confidential information and for identifying and monitoring the movement of Client information. Furthermore, the firm shall not disclose details of any client to anyone outside the firm, its entities and approved third party providers;
- The firm executes all orders in accordance with its policies and procedures which comply with relevant rules and regulations in relation to the transactions executed for its customers. The firm’s procedures provide for fair and prompt execution of all client orders. Those orders executed on behalf of clients are promptly and accurately recorded and allocated unless the characteristics of the order or prevailing market conditions make this impractical, or the interest of the client requires otherwise;
- The firm’s procedures are established to ensure that the firm and its employees and affiliates do not misuse any information relating to pending client orders;
- All employees of the firm are required to comply with the firm’s rules and procedures. Employees are obliged to declare all outside economic interests to the firm. Management must approve all outside employment;
- All employees are prohibited from accepting gifts or other incentives from any person who may have a material interest which might conflict with any duty which the Firm or its employees owe to clients in connection with the client’s investment business.
- The firm ensures that it does not give incentives to activities that may lead to conflicts. The firm does not and will not offer remuneration packages that reward behaviour that disadvantages the interests of customers or members in the firm’ favour, or other clients. Staff will be rewarded on the basis of merit and long-term value-adding performance alone.
Compliance and Supervision
The Firm is required to have in place an effective compliance function which will enable it to deal with any potential conflicts of interest which may arise. Employees are required to monitor all circumstances that may give rise to any potential conflicts of interest and take action to ensure that appropriate measures are in place to address these situations.
In the unlikely event that the firm’s arrangements to manage conflicts of interest are not sufficient to ensure that risks of damage to its clients’ interests can be prevented, the Firm will, in that case, clearly disclose the general nature and/or sources of conflicts of interest to its client before undertaking business with that client.
All employees are responsible to remain in compliance with this policy at all times and senior management of the Firm is responsible for ensuring that all systems and controls meet the requirements imposed by the applicable regulations. The firm’s Compliance team periodically reviews the contents of the firm’s Conflict of Interest Policy to ensure the fulfilment of both the regulatory requirements and the firm’s internal policies, as well as the effectiveness of the steps taken within the firm’s business model for managing all possible conflicts of interest.