1. Purpose
This policy sets out how Jadenex identifies conflicts of interest, how it prevents them where prevention is possible, how it manages those that remain and when it discloses a conflict to an account holder.
The starting position is prevention. Disclosure is a last resort and is not a substitute for managing a conflict properly.
2. Identification
A conflict may arise between Jadenex and an account holder, between two account holders, or between a member of staff and an account holder. The following situations are treated as giving rise to a conflict.
- A member of staff holds or trades an asset listed on the exchange or under consideration for listing.
- A commercial relationship exists with an issuer whose asset is listed or under consideration.
- Jadenex earns a fee that varies with the trading activity of a particular account holder.
- A member of staff has access to order flow information, to unpublished listing decisions or to unpublished surveillance findings.
- A member of staff has a personal relationship with an account holder whose account they review or administer.
3. Structural prevention
The following arrangements prevent conflicts from arising.
- Jadenex does not trade for its own account against client orders and does not operate a market making desk on its own book.
- No account holder receives market data ahead of another and no order type confers priority other than price and time.
- The compliance function is independent of the commercial function and reports to the board.
- Listing decisions are made by a committee in which the commercial function does not hold a casting vote, and no payment is accepted in exchange for a listing decision.
- Access to order flow information, to unpublished listing decisions and to surveillance findings is restricted to those who need it for their role.
- Remuneration of compliance and surveillance staff is not linked to trading volume or to listing revenue.
4. Personal account dealing
Every member of staff, every officer and every contractor with access to non public information is subject to the following rules.
- A holding in a listed asset must be declared on joining and whenever it changes.
- A personal trade in a listed asset requires pre clearance from compliance and pre clearance is valid for the trading day on which it is given.
- A personal trade is prohibited while the person holds non public information relevant to the asset, including an unpublished listing or delisting decision.
- A minimum holding period applies to a cleared personal trade and short term trading for the purpose of profiting from a price movement is prohibited.
- A breach of these rules is a disciplinary matter and may be reported to a competent authority.
5. Management and recording
A conflicts register records each identified conflict, the persons and functions affected, the measure adopted and the person responsible for it. The register is reviewed at least annually and whenever a new conflict is identified.
Where a measure is not sufficient to ensure with reasonable confidence that the risk of damage to an account holder is prevented, the conflict is disclosed to the account holder before the relevant service is provided, in a manner that allows an informed decision.
6. Inducements
Jadenex does not accept a payment or a non monetary benefit from a third party that would conflict with its duty to account holders. A minor non monetary benefit is permitted only where it is capable of enhancing the quality of the service and is recorded.
7. Governance
The board approves this policy and receives reporting on the conflicts register at least annually. Training on this policy forms part of induction and of annual refresher training.