DOHA: The QFC Regulatory Authority has announced to censure International Financial Services (Qatar) LLC (IFSQ) after reaching a settlement agreement that addresses the QFC Regulatory Authority’s serious concerns regarding the actions of a former approved individual of IFSQ and IFSQ’s systems and controls in relation to that conduct, said a statement yesterday.
The QFC Regulatory Authority censures IFSQ under Article 58 of the Financial Services Regulations for the following: IFSQ managed clients’ investments causing it to breach the scope of its authorisation, in contravention of Article 11(2) of the Qatar Financial Centre Law; IFSQ’s record-keeping systems were not adequate in ensuring that client files contained appropriate historical records of client communications and IFSQ failed to keep appropriate records of client communications, as required under rule 6.2.6 of the General Rulebook; IFSQ’s corporate governance processes and senior management personnel failed to ensure that its affairs were managed effectively, in contravention of Rule 2.1.3 of the Principles Rulebook (PRIN); and IFSQ failed to ensure that it had effective systems and controls in place, including risk management systems and adequate human and technological resources, in contravention of rule 2.1.4 of PRIN.
The QFC Regulatory Authority considered IFSQ’s contraventions to be serious, with the potential to undermine the confidence of current and prospective users of the QFC. IFSQ demonstrated a commitment to settle the matter and reported the conduct to the QFC Regulatory Authority. IFSQ cooperated with the Regulatory Authority during the course of the investigation and undertook remedial steps. The Peninsula
