The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC ) has just announced that it has reached a settlement with MAXIFLEX LTD, ordering the firm to pay €370,000 for violating the Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law.
According to the watchdog’s statement, the violations related to non-compliance with the article 22(1), and in particular with the authorisation conditions laid down in sections 17(2), 17(3) and 17(6). These terms concern certain authorisation conditions and organisational requirements with which a CIF is required to comply.
CySEC has further explained that the settlement resolves allegations of non-compliance with other articles that cover multiple regulatory requirements, including conflicts of interest and information provided to clients.
In addition, MAXIFLEX LTD was probed by Cysec for lack of compliance with regulatory requirements that govern the assessment of suitability and appropriateness of clients, as well as its obligation to execute orders on the most favourable terms to their customers.
Open a Trading Account Today With These Recommended Brokers
Maxiflex Ltd (trading as EuropeFX) is regulated by CySEC and therefore has to comply with Cypriot regulations in order to maintain its CIF trading license, which enables the broker to offer its services across Europe, the watchdog stated. The company decided in June to cease providing investment services in the UK.
Following such settlements, CySEC often orders the company to take corrective measures within a set framework. However, the regulator confirmed that Maxiflex already paid the settlement fees and since such agreements are usually announced within six months of an inspection, the majority of issues should have already been resolved.
After several months of pause, the Cypriot regulator is once again flexing their muscles and actively finding compliance irregularities. The news about the settlement with Maxiflex comes a few months after CySEC fined XTrade Europe Ltd €200,000 due to shortcomings in the company’s anti-money laundering programs.
