The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) today announced a EUR 290,000 settlement with Cyprus investment firm (CIF) Mount Nico Corp Ltd. The company operates through brands such as NicoFX and Excentral.

The CySEC explains that, according to article 37(4) of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission Law of 2009, it has the power to reach a settlement for any violation or possible violation, act or omission for which there is reasonable ground to believe that it took place in violation of the provisions of CySEC’s supervised legislation.

A settlement has been reached with the CIF Mount Nico Corp Ltd for possible violations of the Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law of 2017 and the Directive DI144-2014-14 of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission for the Prudential Supervision of Investment Services Firms.

More specifically, the investigation for which the settlement was reached, is related to the findings concerning, the period of February 2020 to December 2020, with regard to the Company’s compliance with:

• 1. Article 5(1) of the Law regarding the requirement for CIF authorization.
• 2. Article 22 (1) of the Law regarding the obligation of continuous compliance with the conditions of CIF authorisation and specifically with articles 17(3)(c) (specifying an identified target market) and 17(9) (safeguarding of clients rights of the Law).
• 3. Article 24 of the Law regarding conflicts of interest.
• 4. Paragraph 21(g) of the Directive DI144-2014-14 regarding the variable elements of remuneration.
• 5. Article 25, sections (1) and (3), of the Law regarding the general principles and information addressed to clients.
• 6. Article 26(3)(a) of the Law, Law regarding the assessment of suitability and appropriateness and reporting to clients.

The settlement reached with the investment firm, for possible violations, is for the amount of €290,000, which the company has already paid.