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COBS 22.1 Temporary restrictions on contingent convertible instruments

COBS 22.1.1 R
  1. (1)

    1A firm must not

    1. (a)

      sell a contingent convertible instrument to a retail client in the EEA; or

    2. (b)

      do anything that would or might result in the buying of a contingent convertible instrument or of a beneficial interest in a contingent convertible instrument by a retail client in the EEA.

  2. (2)

    The prohibition in (1) does not apply if the firm has taken reasonable steps to ensure that one or more of the exemptions in COBS 22.1.2 R applies.

  3. (3)

    In this section a retail client of the firm includes a person who would be a retail client if he were receiving services from the firm in the course of carrying on a regulated activity.

  4. (4)

    The rules in this section cease to have effect on 1 October 2015.

Exemptions

COBS 22.1.2 R

Title

Type of retail client

Additional conditions

Certified high net worth investors

An individual who meets the requirements set out in COBS 4.12.6 R, or a person (or persons) legally empowered to make investment decisions on behalf of such individual.

The firm must consider the contingent convertible instrument is likely to be suitable for that individual, based on a preliminary assessment of that individual's profile and objectives. (See COBS 4.12.5 G (2).)

Exempt persons

An exempt person (other than a person exempted only by section 39 of the Act (Exemption of appointed representatives)) if the activity relates to a regulated activity in respect of which the person is exempt from the general prohibition.

Not applicable.

Certified sophisticated investors

An individual who meets the requirements set out in COBS 4.12.7 R, including an individual who is legally empowered (solely or jointly with others) to make investment decisions on behalf of another person who is the firm'sclient.

Not applicable.

Self-certified sophisticated investors

An individual who meets the requirements set out in COBS 4.12.8 R, including an individual who is legally empowered (solely or jointly with others) to make investment decisions on behalf of another person who is the firm'sclient.

The firm must consider the contingent convertible instrument is likely to be suitable for that individual, based on a preliminary assessment of that individual's profile and objectives. (See COBS 4.12.5 G (2).)

Solicited advice

Any retail client.

The prohibition does not apply provided all of the following requirements are met:

(a) there is no financial promotion other than a personal recommendation on the contingent convertible instrument;

(b) the personal recommendation is made following a specific request by that client for advice on the merits of investing in the contingent convertible instrument; and

(c) the client has not previously received a financial promotion or any other communication from the firm (or from a person connected to the firm) which is intended to influence the client in relation to investment in contingent convertible instruments. (See Note 1.)

MiFID or equivalent third country business other than financial promotions

Any retail client.

If the prohibited activities amount to MiFID or equivalent third country business, that rule only applies to the extent that the prohibited activity is the communication or approval of a financial promotion.

Prospectus

Any retail client.

The prohibition does not apply to the distribution of a prospectus required under the Prospectus Directive.

Issuers

Any retail client

To the extent that the firm is acting as issuer of a contingent convertible instrument, the prohibition only applies to the original issuance of the contingent convertible instrument and not to subsequent trading in the secondary market.

Clearing, custodial and processing services

Any retail client

The prohibition does not apply to the extent that the firm's activities relate to clearing, registration or settlement of transactions in contingent convertible instruments (or rights to or interests in such instruments), any back office processing or reporting of such transactions, or custody of contingent convertible instruments.

Indirect investment

Any retail client

The prohibition does not apply in relation to a beneficial interest in a contingent convertible instrument held from participation in a regulated collective investment scheme, investment in a non-mainstream pooled investment, or membership of an occupational pension scheme.

Note 1

A person is connected with a firm if it acts as an introducer or appointed representative for that firm or, if it is any other person, regardless of authorisation status, who has a relevant business relationship with the firm.

Note 2

See COBS 2.4 for rules and guidance on agent as client and reliance on others.

COBS 22.1.3 R
  1. (1)

    For the purposes of compliance with this section and with any assessments or certifications required by the exemptions set out in COBS 22.1.2 R, any references in COBS 4.12 provisions to non-mainstream pooled investments must be read as though they are references to contingent convertible instruments.

  2. (2)

    If the firm is relying on the high net worth investor exemption, the sophisticated investor exemption or the self-certified sophisticated investor exemption for the purposes of compliance with COBS 22.1.1 R, the statement the investor must sign should have references to non-mainstream pooled investments replaced with references to contingent convertible instruments.

  3. (3)

    The firm must give the retail client a written copy of any statements that individual has been asked to sign as part of certification as a high net worth, sophisticated or self-certified sophisticated investor for the purposes of compliance with COBS 22.1.1 R.

COBS 22.1.4 R

If a firmcommunicates or approves an invitation or inducement to acquire or underwrite a contingent convertible instrument (or rights to interests in that instrument) which is addressed to, or disseminated in such a way that it is likely to be received by, a retail client, it must comply with the record-keeping requirements in COBS 4.11.1 R, adapted as follows:

  1. (1)

    references to non-mainstream pooled investments should be read as references to contingent convertible instruments; and

  2. (2)

    references to COBS 4.12.3 R should be read as references to COBS 22.1.1 R.

COBS 22.2 Requirements on the retail distribution of mutual society shares

COBS 22.2.1 R RP
  1. (1)

    1The requirements in this section apply to a firm when dealing in or arranging a deal in a mutual society share with or for a retail client in the EEA where the retail client is to enter into the deal as buyer.

  2. (2)

    The requirements in this section do not apply if:

    1. (a)

      the firm has taken reasonable steps to ensure that one (or more) of the exemptions in COBS 22.2.4R applies; or

    2. (b)

      the deal relates to the trading of a mutual society share in the secondary market.

  3. (3)

    In this section, a retail client of the firm includes a person who would be a retail client if he were receiving services in the course of the firm carrying on a regulated activity.

Risk warning requirement

COBS 22.2.2 R RP
  1. 1The firm must give the retail client the following risk warning on paper or another durable medium and obtain confirmation in writing from the retail client that he has read it, in good time before the retail client has committed to buy the mutual society share:

  2. “The investment to which this communication relates is a share. Direct investment in shares can be high risk and is very different to investment in deposit accounts or other savings products. In particular, you should note that:

    1. (a)

      the entire amount you invest is at risk;

    2. (b)

      income, distribution or dividend payments are not guaranteed, are entirely discretionary, and may be suspended or cancelled at any time, for any reason;

    3. (c)

      the share is a perpetual instrument with no maturity date, and there is no obligation on the issuer to buy the share back;

    4. (d)

      the share may be difficult to sell on for the price you paid for it, or any price; and

    5. (e)

      investing more than 10% of your savings or net investment portfolio in this type of instrument is unlikely to be in your best interests.”

Further requirements for non-advised, non-MiFID sales

COBS 22.2.3 R RP
  1. (1)

    1The requirements in (2) and (3) must be met if:

    1. (a)

      the firm is not providing an investment service in the course of MiFID or equivalent third country business; and

    2. (b)

      the retail client is not otherwise receiving advice on the mutual society share from the firm or another person.

  2. (2)

    The firm must give the retail client the following statement on paper or another durable medium and obtain confirmation in writing from the retail client that he has signed it, in good time before the retail client has committed to buy the mutual society share:

  3. “I make this statement in connection with proposed investment in mutual society shares. I have been made aware that investing more than 10% of my net assets in mutual society shares is unlikely to be in my best interests. I declare that the proposed investment would not result in more than 10% of my net assets being invested in mutual society shares. Net assets for these purposes mean my financial assets after deduction of any debts I have, and do not include:

    1. (a)

      the property which is my primary residence, any amount owed under a mortgage relating to the purchase of that property, or any money raised through a loan secured on that property;

    2. (b)

      any rights of mine under a qualifying contract of insurance (for example, a life assurance or critical illness policy); or

    3. (c)

      any benefits (in the form of pensions or otherwise) which are payable on the termination of my service or on my death or retirement and to which I am (or my dependants are) or may be entitled.

  4. I accept that the investment to which this statement relates will expose me to a significant risk of losing all the money invested.

  5. Signature:

  6. Date: ”

  7. (3)

    The firm must assess whether investment in the mutual society share is appropriate for the retail client, complying with the requirements in COBS 10 as though the firm was providing non-advised investment services in the course of MiFID or equivalent third country business.

COBS 22.2.4 R RP
  1. 1Each of the exemptions listed below applies only if the retail client is of the type described for the exemption and provided any additional conditions for the exemption are met.

  2. Title

    Type of retail client

    Additional conditions

    Certified high net worth investor

    (a) An individual who meets the requirements set out in

    COBS 4.12.6R ; or

    (b) an individual in an EEA State other than the UK who meets requirements which are broadly equivalent to those set out in COBS 4.12.6R; or

    (c) a person (or persons) legally empowered to make investment decisions on behalf of an individual who meets the earnings or net asset requirements in (a) or (b) above.

    The firm must consider that the mutual society share is likely to be suitable for that individual, based on a preliminary assessment of that individual’s profile and objectives (see COBS 4.12.5G(2)).

    Certified sophisticated investor

    (a) An individual who meets the requirements set out in

    COBS 4.12.7R ; or

    (b) an individual in an EEA State other than the UK who meets requirements which are broadly equivalent to those set out in COBS 4.12.7R; or

    (c) an individual who meets the requirements for either (a) or (b) above and who is legally empowered (solely or jointly with others) to make investment decisions on behalf of another person who is the firm's client.

    Not applicable.

    Self-certified sophisticated investor

    (a) An individual who meets the requirements set out in

    COBS 4.12.8R ; or

    (b) an individual in an EEA State other than the UK who meets requirements which are broadly equivalent to those set out in COBS 4.12.8R; or

    (c) an individual who meets the requirements for either (a) or (b) above and who is legally empowered (solely or jointly with others) to make investment decisions on behalf of another person who is the firm's client.

    Not applicable.

Adaptation of other rules and guidance to mutual society shares

COBS 22.2.5 R RP
  1. (1)

    1For the purposes of any assessments or certifications required by the exemptions in COBS 22.2.4R, any references in COBS 4.12 provisions to non-mainstream pooled investments must be read as though they are references to mutual society shares.

  2. (2)

    If the firm is relying on the exemptions for certified high net worth investors, certified sophisticated investors or self-certified sophisticated investors to comply with this section, the statement the investor must sign should have references to non-mainstream pooled investments replaced with references to mutual society shares.

  3. (3)

    The firm must give the retail client a written copy of any risk warning or statement that that individual has been asked to sign for the purposes of compliance with this section.

Record keeping

COBS 22.2.6 R RP

1A firm which carries on an activity which is subject to this section must comply with the following record-keeping requirements:

  1. (1)

    the person allocated the compliance oversight function in the firm must make a record at or near the time of the activity certifying it complies with the requirements set out in this section;

  2. (2)

    the making of the record required in (1) may be delegated to one or more employees of the firm who report to and are supervised by the person allocated the compliance oversight function, provided the process for certification of compliance has been reviewed and approved by the person allocated the compliance oversight function no more than 12 months before the date of the deal;

  3. (3)

    the record in (1) must include information and evidence demonstrating compliance with each of the requirements in this section, as applicable;

  4. (4)

    if the requirements in COBS 22.2.2R and COBS 22.2.3R did not apply because the firm relied on one of the exemptions, the record in (1) must include which exemption was relied on, together with the reason why the firm is satisfied that that exemption applies;

  5. (5)

    where the firm relies on the certified high net worth investor, the certified sophisticated investor or the self-certified sophisticated investor exemption, the record required in (1) must include a copy of the certificate or investor statement (as signed by the investor) and of the warnings or indications required by the exemption;

  6. (6)

    a firm must retain the record required in (1) for five years if it relates to MiFID or equivalent third country business, and otherwise for three years.

Electronic documents

COBS 22.2.7 G RP

1In this section:

  1. (1)

    any requirement that a document is signed may be satisfied by an electronic signature or electronic evidence of assent; and

  2. (2)

    any references to writing should be construed in accordance with GEN 2.2.14R and its related guidance provisions.

COBS 22.3 Restrictions on the retail distribution of contingent convertible instruments and CoCo funds

Restrictions

COBS 22.3.1 R RP
  1. (1)

    1The restrictions in this section apply in relation to the following investments:

    1. (a)

      a contingent convertible instrument; or

    2. (b)

      a security issued by a CoCo fund; or

    3. (c)

      a beneficial interest in either of (a) or (b).

  2. (2)

    A firm must not:

    1. (a)

      sell an investment to a retail client in the EEA; or

    2. (b)

      communicate or approve an invitation or inducement to participate in, acquire or underwrite an investment where that invitation or inducement is addressed to or disseminated in such a way that it is likely to be received by a retail client in the EEA.

  3. (3)

    The restrictions do not apply if the firm has taken reasonable steps to ensure that one (or more) of the exemptions in COBS 22.3.2R applies.

  4. (4)

    In this section a retail client includes a person who would be a retail client if he were receiving services from the firm in the course of the firm carrying on a regulated activity.

Exemptions

COBS 22.3.2 R RP

1Each of the exemptions listed below applies only if the retail client is of the type described for the exemption and provided any additional conditions for the exemption are met.

Title

Type of retail client

Additional conditions

Certified high net worth investor

(a) An individual who meets the requirements set out in

COBS 4.12.6R ; or

(b) an individual in an EEA State other than the UK who meets requirements which are broadly equivalent to those set out in COBS 4.12.6R; or

(c) a person (or persons) legally empowered to make investment decisions on behalf of an individual who meets the earnings or net asset requirements in (a) or (b) above

The firm must consider that the investment is likely to be suitable for that individual, based on a preliminary assessment of that individual’s profile and objectives (see COBS 4.12.5G(2)).

Certified sophisticated investor

(a) An individual who meets the requirements set out in

COBS 4.12.7R ; or

(b) an individual in an EEA State other than the UK who meets requirements which are broadly equivalent to those set out in COBS 4.12.7R; or

(c) an individual who meets the requirements for either (a) or (b) above and who is legally empowered (solely or jointly with others) to make investment decisions on behalf of another person who is the firm's client.

Not applicable.

Self-certified sophisticated investor

(a) An individual who meets the requirements set out in

COBS 4.12.8R ; or

(b) an individual in an EEA State other than the UK who meets requirements which are broadly equivalent to those set out in COBS 4.12.8R; or

(c) an individual who meets the requirements for either (a) or (b) above and who is legally empowered (solely or jointly with others) to make investment decisions on behalf of another person who is the firm's client.

The firm must consider that the investment is likely to be suitable for that individual, based on a preliminary assessment of that individual’s profile and objectives (see COBS 4.12.5G(2)).

Solicited advice

Any retail client.

The restrictions do not apply provided all of the following requirements are met:

(a) there is no invitation or inducement to participate in, acquire or underwrite the investment other than a personal recommendation on the investment;

(b) the personal recommendation is made following a specific request by that client for advice on the investment; and

(c) the client has not previously received any other communication (whether or not a financial promotion) from the firm or from a person connected to the firm which is intended to influence the client in relation to the investment.

(See Note 1)

MiFID or equivalent third country business other than financial promotions

Any retail client.

COBS 22.3.1R(2)(a) does not apply to MiFID or equivalent third country business (see COBS 9.3.5G).

Prospectus

Any retail client.

The restrictions do not apply to the distribution of a prospectus required under the Prospectus Directive.

Issuers

Any retail client

To the extent that the firm is acting as issuer of a contingent convertible instrument, the restrictions only apply to the original issuance of the contingent convertible instrument and not to subsequent trading in the secondary market.

Indirect investment

Any retail client

The restrictions do not apply in relation to a beneficial interest in a contingent convertible instrument acquired through participation in a regulated collective investment scheme, investment in a non-mainstream pooled investment (provided it is not a CoCo fund), or membership of an occupational pension scheme.

Note 1

A person is connected with a firm if it acts as an introducer or appointed representative for that firm or if it is any other person, regardless of authorisation status, who has a relevant business relationship with the firm.

Note 2

See COBS 2.4 for rules and guidance on agent as client and reliance on others.

Adaptation of other rules and guidance to contingent convertible instruments and CoCo funds

COBS 22.3.3 R RP
  1. (1)

    For the purposes of any assessments or certifications required by the exemptions in COBS 22.3.2R, any references in COBS 4.12 provisions to non-mainstream pooled investments must be read as though they are references to contingent convertible instruments or CoCo funds, as relevant.

  2. (2)

    If the firm is relying on the high net worth investor, the sophisticated investor or the self-certified sophisticated investor exemption to comply with this section, the statement the investor must sign should have references to non-mainstream pooled investments replaced with references to contingent convertible instruments or CoCo funds, as relevant.

  3. (3)

    The firm must give the retail client a written copy of any statements that individual has been asked to sign as part of certification as a high net worth, sophisticated or self-certified sophisticated investor for the purposes of compliance with this section.

COBS 22.3.4 G RP

A firm wishing to certify a retail client as a sophisticated investor for the purposes of this section should note that, in the FCA’s view, it is likely that the only retail clients with the requisite sophistication in relation to contingent convertible instruments or CoCo funds are those with significant experience with investment in multiple types of complex financial instruments and who have sufficient understanding of how credit institutions are run, including risks to the ability of those institutions to meet prudential requirements on an ongoing basis.

Record keeping

COBS 22.3.5 R RP

A firm which carries on an activity which is subject to this section must comply with the following record-keeping requirements:

  1. (1)

    the person allocated the compliance oversight function in the firm must make a record at or near the time of the activity certifying it complies with the restrictions set out in this section;

  2. (2)

    the making of the record required in (1) may be delegated to one or more employees of the firm who report to, and are supervised by, the person allocated the compliance oversight function, provided the process for certification of compliance has been reviewed and approved by the person allocated the compliance oversight function no more than 12 months before the date of the sale or communication or approval of the invitation or inducement;

  3. (3)

    when making the record required in (1), the firm must make a record of which exemption was relied on for the purposes of the activity within the scope of this section, together with the reason why the firm is satisfied that that exemption applies;

  4. (4)

    where the firm relies on the certified high net worth investor, the certified sophisticated investor or the self-certified sophisticated investor exemption, the record in (1) must include a copy of the certificate or investor statement (as signed by the investor) and of the warnings or indications required by the exemption, as applicable;

  5. (5)

    a firm must retain the record required in (1) for five years if it relates to MiFID or equivalent third country business, and otherwise for three years.

COBS 22.3.6 G RP

To the extent the requirements in COBS 22.3.5R apply to the communication or approval of any invitation or inducement, such requirements are in addition to those set out in COBS 4.11.