Bank of Russia issues instructions on Forex brokers’ reporting
The document sheds lights on the necessary reports about annual shareholder meetings, provision of information about founders and directors, as well as revealing general details about a company.
It has been more than two years since Russia’s president Vladimir Putin signed the Forex law and, ever since, the volume of additional requirements and instructions concerning Forex companies has been rising. In fact, the amount of red tape for Forex brokers in Russia, or Forex dealers, as their official designation says, has been one of the reasons for the small number of companies that have thus far obtained Forex dealer licenses from the Central Bank of Russia.
Today, the Bank of Russia, which is the regulator responsible for the Forex industry, along with all other financial sectors in Russia, published a Directive about the reporting requirements for financial market participants. A substantial part of the document is dedicated to Forex dealers (Forex brokers) which have to file a number of reports with the regulator.
The document specifies the content of the reports and the deadlines for submitting them. The latter ones vary between 5 and 10 days after a certain change occurred. Overall, the reporting deadlines are quite short. Special attention is paid to the reports concerning any changes to the details of those who own at least 10% of the voting rights in a broker; the reports for the annual shareholder meeting; and the report for the general information about a company. The Bank of Russia also provides instructions on what information to provide about counteragents.
The Directive has been submitted to Russia’s Ministry of Justice for registration.
Thus far, there are eight companies that hold Forex dealer licenses in Russia. The problems with the entities that target Russian clientele without having the necessary regulatory permission continue. As most of these entities are based overseas, the Bank of Russia has no authority to impose any penalties. However, the regulator is considering legislative changes that will allow the blocking of such websites in Russia. The Central Bank has already filed its proposals for the relevant law amendments with the Ministry of Communications and Mass Media (Minkomsvyaz).
