Risk Warning
Before trading Contracts for Difference, ensure you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all types of investor. Trading in Contracts for Difference carries a high degree of risk and is generally considered suitable only for the more experienced investor. Leveraged products carry a high degree of risk for your capital, and in some circumstances you may be liable for a greater sum than your initial capital invested.
Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance. Seek independent financial advice if necessary. These products are suitable only for people over the age of 18. Information and analysis produced by TCG Securities LLP does not constitute a recommendation or offer to make a transaction in any derivatives or securities, and is intended to be general in nature. TCG Securities LLP is an Appointed Representative of Equitrade Markets Ltd which is fully authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Trading Contracts for Differences (CFDs), Futures and spread betting carries a high level of risk to your capital, and is not suitable for all investors. Only speculate with money you can afford to lose. Trading or placing any bets can result in consumers incurring liabilities in excess of their initial stake.
Please ensure you fully understand the risks, and seek independent advice if necessary.
Disclaimer
Information contained in this website has been issued by TCG Securities LLP is an Appointed Representative of Equitrade Markets Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority in the UK. Your usage of this site is subject to the conditions and limitations stated below and your access and usage of this site means that the you agree to the following conditions.
By accessing and using the information on this Website you (the User) agree and consent as follows: -
1. TCG Securities LLP is a firm authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority to provide advice and act as an arranger of Contracts for Difference, Spread Betting, Futures, Options and Foreign Exchange. The advice is offered without regard to the specific circumstances of individual investors. Before trading or completing any investment transaction in any area covered by this Website the User should seek independent professional advice, if in doubt.
2. TCG Securities LLP accepts no responsibility or liability for any use the User may make of the information on this Website or any associated services advertised on this Website. Advertisements on this Website do not constitute an endorsement by TCG Securities LLP or its editor of the services or products advertised.
3. TCG Securities LLP warns the User that CFD trading carries a high level of risk to the capital of those who trade or bet, and is not suitable for all investors. Those who trade CFDs should only speculate with money they can afford to lose. Before placing any trades they should ensure they fully understand the risks, and seek independent advice if necessary.
4. All registered users of the TCG Securities LLP website are treated as retail investors, and therefore they are afforded the greatest protection available under FSA rules.
5. TCG Securities LLP does not warrant the accuracy or reliability of any statements or opinions displayed on this Website.
6. TCG Securities LLP takes no responsibility of any kind for any third party contents or other sites, which the User is able to access through this Website.
7. TCG Securities LLP reserves the right without notice to change the content, presentation and/or facilities of this Website.
8. The information on this website is intended for use by UK residents who are 18 years or older. TCG Securities LLP is an Appointed Representitive of Equitrade Markets Limited, a firm authorised regulated by The Financial Services Authority to give investment advice in the United Kingdom. TCG Securities LLP accepts no liability for compliance with the regulatory requirements or laws of any other country or for the use of the information by any person whose country of residence prohibits the use of such information.
9. The User undertakes not to publish on this Website any matter that is libellous, defamatory, obscene or otherwise violates any copyright or other law and acknowledges that any submissions, may be edited, removed or modified. Notwithstanding this, the User shall remain solely responsible for the content of his own submissions and shall indemnify TCG Securities LLP accordingly.
10. Whilst TCG Securities LLP makes all reasonable attempts to exclude viruses from the Website it cannot ensure such exclusion and no liability is accepted for viruses. The User is, therefore, recommended to take all appropriate safeguards for downloading information from this Website.
11. TCG Securities LLP reserves the right in its sole discretion to terminate or suspend the User's access to all or part of the Website. TCG Securities LLP reserves the right to charge fees for access to any portion of this Website and all fees and charges shall be invoiced to and payable by the User.
12. Access to certain TCG Securities LLP Content may be subject to a fee. All payments (including applicable taxes) must be made in advance. You may use the Site to purchase products or services from TCG Securities LLP CFDs third party partners. In that event, your contract for such products will be with the third party partner and not with TCG Securities LLP.
13. These terms and any claim based on use of information from this Website shall be governed by English laws and the parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
Privacy Policy
The TCG Securities LLP website will ask for some personal details in some parts of the site. However, any information gathered will be used solely by TCG Securities LLP for marketing purposes and or to evaluate the use of the site, your details will not be passed to any other company except to our own affiliates and agents.
Terms of Business
1.0 This Agreement
The terms of the contract between you and us are set out in these terms of business, the cover letter, the account opening form, the rate schedule and the risk disclosures. We refer to them together (as each may be amended or supplemented from time to time) as this Agreement. Please read this Agreement carefully as it contains important provisions concerning your and our rights and obligations in relation to the services we agree to provide you. Please let us know as soon as possible if there is anything that you do not understand. These terms constitute a contract between you and us, TCG Securities LLP (FSA Reference Number 482887), which is an Appointed Representative of Equitrade Markets Ltd (FSA Reference number 441877) which is a firm authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority for the conduct of investment business.
1.1 Commencement
This Agreement takes effect when you complete, sign and return the account opening form to us. We will not open your Account until we have approved your account opening form. Please retain a copy of the signed account opening form and the other parts of this Agreement for your records.
1.2 Classification
For the purposes of the FSA rules, we will treat you as a Retail Client. You are entitled to request a different classification, but this would result in a lower level of regulatory protection. As such it is our policy normally to decline such requests. You should contact us if you require any further details. If you are acting as an agent for someone else, we will treat you alone as our customer for the purposes of the FSA rules and you will be liable to that person in respect of your transactions. We will ensure that in dealing for you we act in your best interests and have available a conflicts of interest policy which sets out our standards. This is available upon request.
1.3 Third Party Executing Brokers/Clearers
We have entered into an agreement with IG Markets Ltd (IG) as our third party clearing and executing broker, on behalf of ourselves and each of our clients whereby IG has agreed to provide execution, clearing and settlement, and associated services for clients whom we introduced to them. IG is a Member of the London Stock Exchange, regulated by the Financial Services Authority (number 195355). Registered Office Cannon Bridge House, 25 Dowgate Hill, London EC4R 2YA. The current terms and conditions of IG and the principal terms of the agreement with them as applicable to our clients including you are set out in the IG Markets terms and conditions (provided to you by IG Markets.
By acceptance of this agreement, you agree that:-
(i) we are authorised to enter into an IG Markets Ltd Agreement on your behalf as your agent on the terms summarised below and such additional terms as we may determine;
(ii) acceptance of these terms will constitute the formation of a contract between you and ourselves and also between you and IG and that you will be bound by the terms of the IG Agreement and the terms and conditions of IG Markets Ltd accordingly;
(iii) we are authorised to give instructions (as provided for in these Terms of Business) and provide information concerning you to IG and IG shall be entitled to rely on any such instructions or information without further enquiry;
(iv) IG Markets Ltd is authorised to hold cash and investments on your behalf and is authorised to transfer cash or investments from your account to meet your settlement or other obligations to IG.
Under the IG Agreement, you will remain a customer of ours but will also become a client of IG for execution, settlement and custody purposes only. We retain responsibility for compliance and regulatory requirements regarding our own operations and the supervision and operation of your account and generally for our on-going relationship with you. IG neither provides investment advice nor gives advice or offers any opinion regarding the suitability or appropriateness of any transaction or order and relies on information provided to it by us in respect of all such matters.
1.4 Our capacity
When we deal in Shares, Futures or Contracts for Difference (CFDs) with you, we shall act as agent on your behalf, unless otherwise indicated in this Agreement, agreed elsewhere in writing or notified to you.
1.5 Your Capacity
You act as principal and not as an agent (or trustee) on behalf of someone else. If you are not acting in a principal capacity, please let us know as we have supplemental terms that are suitable for use by agents or trustees.
1.6 Risk and investment objectives
We shall deal with you on the basis that your investment objective is as set out in the Account Opening Form. If your investment objective is incorrectly stated, or you would like to discuss it with us, it is important that you contact us as soon as possible. Any amendment to your investment objective must be confirmed in writing. New clients, or those moving from Execution Only to Advised, will be asked to complete a new Account Opening Form so that we can match our advice to your investment aims and personal risk profile.
Please note that investing in securities traded on stock exchanges will mean that the values of assets and the income from them may fluctuate. All equity investment is likely to involve significant volatility, particularly over short time horizons. Holding a limited number of equities that do not provide adequate diversification can result in this being exacerbated, and investors in individual equities should be particularly aware of the risks inherent in such an investment strategy. Assessing the relative risk of any security is highly subjective and may change over time. It is not therefore possible to provide precise definitions for the measurement of risk or the potential impact, however, the following definitions are intended as guidelines of risk:
Lower Risk - this category may be most appropriate if you do not wish your investments to be exposed to significant volatility. However, you must accept that this may mean that the opportunity to seek enhanced returns can be reduced. You must also accept that the category of 'Lower Risk' does not mean 'No Risk'. Advice may be given on short-dated securities, investment trusts and unit trusts.
Medium Risk - the category of 'Medium Risk' is most appropriate if you do not wish your investments to be exposed to significant volatility in the longer term. However, you must accept that there may be fluctuations in the capital value of your investments over the shorter term in order to allow you the opportunity to seek enhanced returns. Advice may be given on most equities and longer-term fixed-income securities.
Higher Risk - the category of 'Higher Risk' is only appropriate if you accept that there will be fluctuations in the capital value of your investments over both the shorter and medium terms in order to allow you the opportunity to seek higher returns. Advice may be given on smaller and single product companies. If either your circumstances or your views change, and you wish to amend either your investment objectives or risk objectives you should notify us as soon as possible. Such changes will be without prejudice to any transactions already entered into.
1.7 Risk Warning
The value of investments may fall as well as rise and the past performance of investments is not necessarily a guide to future performance. We give advice on the basis of our best judgement at the time and cannot be held responsible if any investment fails to achieve our expectations.
Please note, you will not be able to trade in warrants, options, futures, securitised derivatives and contracts for difference until you have signed the appropriate warning notice, available from your broker.
PART 2: SCOPE AND APPLICATION
2.0 Scope of this Agreement
This Agreement sets out the basis on which we will advise upon, deal in and arrange deals in investments, enter into Transactions and provide such other services as agreed in writing from time to time. This Agreement governs each Transaction entered into or outstanding between us on or after the execution of this Agreement. Except as set out in the cover letter, then subject to Applicable Regulations and this Agreement (including the account application form), there shall be no restrictions on the Transactions in respect of which we may advise you or deal with you. This Agreement supersedes any previous agreement between us on the same subject matter and takes effect when you signify your acceptance of this Agreement. You acknowledge that you have not relied on or been induced to enter into this Agreement by a representation other than those expressly set out in this Agreement. We will not be liable to you (in equity, contract or tort, under the Misrepresentation Act 1967) for a representation, other than a fraudulent misrepresentation, that is not set out in this Agreement. We are obliged by the FSA Rules to comply with certain rules of conduct. However, we assume no greater responsibility or fiduciary duty, other than that imposed by the FSA Rules or the express terms of this Agreement.
PART 3: APPLICABLE REGULATIONS AND EXCHANGE REQUIREMENTS
3.0 Subject to Applicable Regulations
This Agreement and all Transactions are subject to Applicable Regulations so that: (i) if there is any conflict between this Agreement and any Applicable Regulations, the latter will prevail; (ii) nothing in this Agreement shall exclude or restrict any obligation which we have to you under Applicable Regulations; (iii) we may take or omit to take any action we consider necessary to ensure compliance with any Applicable Regulations; (iv) all Applicable Regulations and whatever we do or fail to do in order to comply with them will be binding on you; and (v) such actions that we take or fail to take for the purpose of compliance with any Applicable Regulations shall not render us or any of our directors, officers, employees or agents liable.
3.1 Exchange action
If an Exchange (or intermediate broker or agent or Third Party clearing and executing broker introduced by TCG Securities LLP such as IG, acting at the direction of, or as a result of action taken by, an Exchange) takes any action which affects a Transaction, then we may take any action which we, in our reasonable discretion, consider desirable le to correspond with such action or to mitigate any loss incurred as a result of such action. Any such action shall be binding on you.
3.2 Commissions and fees Disclosure
TCG Securities LLP have negotiated fees and / or commissions that will be payable when a trade is executed. Please see the attached Commission Schedule for details of these charges. TCG Securities LLP are rebated a share of these commissions and fees generated on your account. Please be advised that it is in the interest of TCG Securities LLP that your account trades more frequently, which may or may not be in your interest. You should be aware of a potential conflict of interest if you receive trade recommendations from TCG Securities LLP or IG Markets Ltd.
PART 4: ADVISORY SERVICES
On completing your account opening form you will have indicated whether you wish to open an “Advisory” or “Execution Only” account. For those clients that have elected to receive advisory services we are required to carry out our own “fact finding” procedures and require clients to complete a Account Opening Form. Following the issue of these terms any subsequent advice or recommendation offered to you will be based on your stated investment objectives, acceptable level of risk and any restrictions you wish to place on the type of investments or policies you are willing to consider. We will confirm in writing and seek to update your stated investment objectives, and any restrictions that you wish to place on investments, at least annually if you are an advisory client.
4.0 Financial information
We shall assume that all information about your personal and financial circumstances, as set out in your account opening form and in any further document provided to us, is accurate and complete and we will have no responsibility to you if such information changes or becomes inaccurate unless you have informed us in writing of such changes. Subject to any other clause of this Agreement, you do not have to provide any such information but if you do not we will have no responsibility to you if any assumption made about your personal circumstances is or becomes inaccurate or incomplete. Furthermore, if you do not provide such information, it may have an adverse affect on the quality of the service that we provide.
4.1 No on-going advice
From time to time, we may, at our discretion, provide information, advice and recommendations on our own initiative. However, we shall not be under any obligation to provide on-going advice in relation to the management of your investments.
4.2 Limitations
Where we do provide market information, advice or recommendations, we give no representation, warranty or guarantee as to their accuracy or completeness or as to the tax consequences of any Transaction. Unless we specifically agree otherwise in writing with you, you hereby acknowledge (i) that the provision of advice is incidental to your dealing relationship with us and provided solely to enable you to make your own investment decisions; (ii) that the information provided to other customers may be different from advice given to you due to individual analysis of fundamental and technical factors by different personnel and (iii) that such information may not be consistent with the investments of our associates, directors, employees or agents.
4.3 Research and other published information
We may from time to time send published research reports and recommendations, advertisements and other publications to you. Where such document contains a restriction on the persons or category of persons for whom that document is intended or to whom it may be distributed, you agree that you will not pass it on to any such person or category of persons. Before despatch, we may have acted upon it ourselves or made use of the information on which it is based. We make no representations as to the time of receipt by you of research reports or recommendations and cannot guarantee that you will receive such research reports or recommendations at the same time as other customers. Any such published research reports or recommendations may appear in one or more screen information service. We may provide you access to research reports, trading recommendations, market commentary and other information in relation to investments. These may appear on our website or other internet service or by email. This information (including any recommendations, commentary or other opinions) and material are provided to you for informational purposes only and are not to be used or considered as advice or a recommendation to you with respect to such investments. They have been obtained or derived from sources believed by us to be reliable, but we make no representation, warranty or guarantee as to their accuracy or completeness. We make no representations as to when you will receive our research reports or recommendations. Although we endeavour to send all such material to all our customers on the same Business Day, you may not receive the material at the same time as other customers.
4.4 Securities we advise on
We usually offer advice on CFDs on the leading UK, US and European stocks and major financial indices. From time to time we may also advise on other securities. However, the decision whether or not to offer advice, and the choice of CFDs and/or Securities in relation to which we offer advice, is at our absolute discretion.
4.5 The basis and scope of our advice
Our advisory team uses a combination of fundamental analysis, news information and technical analysis, based on information and data of various kinds derived from one or more of a number of publicly or commercially available sources.
You acknowledge that in formulating the advice we give you it is entirely up to us which method of analysis we use on any given occasion (provided the method we actually use is reasonable or generally recognised as valid by a reasonable body of professional opinion). There are a number of different methods of analysis available, and these different methods could lead to differing or conflicting conclusions, even where the information or data on which the different methods of analysis are based is the same. We will not be liable to you for any loss you may sustain as a result of acting on advice we give you based on one particular method of analysis, merely on the grounds that you would not have suffered that loss (or your loss would be smaller) if we had based our advice on a different method.
You also acknowledge that it is not possible or practicable for us to take into account all available information from all sources when formulating our advice. In particular, we will be entitled to disregard certain matters that might otherwise be relevant to your investment decision on a particular occasion (including matters relating to your individual circumstances), to the extent that those matters fall outside the scope of what is normally taken into account in analysis of the particular kind used by us on that occasion. You acknowledge that advice based on a certain set of information could differ from advice based on a different set of information. We will not be liable to you for any loss you may sustain as a result of acting on advice we give you based on one particular set or kind of information, merely on the grounds that you would not have suffered that loss (or your loss would be smaller) if we had based our advice on a different set or kind of information.
It is your responsibility to ask us if you wish to know what information and methods of analysis have or have not been used by us in each individual instance, in order to assess the inherent limitations of the scope of our advice and to decide how much reliance you wish to place on it.
4.6 The nature of our advice
The advice that we give to you is either General Advice or Individual Advice. General Advice is advice that is directed at or prepared for either (i) any of our customers with whom we deal on an advisory basis, or (ii) a selected group from among those customers, on whatever basis or criteria that group is selected. Individual advice is specific advice that we prepare for and give to you individually.
You acknowledge that all advice that we give you is General Advice unless we specifically and explicitly indicate to you that it is individual advice. When we give you General Advice, it will be based on assumptions that we make and which we consider to be reasonable for the purposes of advising a hypothetical regular trader of CFDs in relation to the security or related CFD to which the advice refers. It is important that you are aware that in formulating General Advice, we consider only the security or related CFD in respect of which we are making a recommendation. We do not assess the individual circumstances (for example any existing exposure to the Security or sector on which we are giving advice) or investment objectives of you or any other specific customer and do not take these factors into account when we formulate General Advice. You agree that we are under no obligation to take account of your individual circumstances and will not do so, even if you have previously made them known to us and even if we have previously given you Individual Advice that took such circumstances into account. You are responsible for determining whether or not you wish to rely on General Advice in the light of your individual circumstances.
When we give you Individual Advice, it will be limited to advice in relation to CFDs, and not in relation to any other kinds of investment or security. In particular, we will not take into consideration whether you might be able to achieve a more advantageous result by investing in securities or forms of investment other that CFDs. For the avoidance of doubt, we will not take into account portfolio risk when giving advice in relation to CFDs.
You acknowledge and agree that, in giving you Individual Advice, the only information about your individual circumstances and investment objectives that we are obliged to take into account are that you wish to make a profit and that you are willing to invest or trade in CFDs to achieve this aim.
4.7 Allocation and Aggregation
When we have issued advice about a particular share or Security and you wish to place an order for a CFD following that advice, it may be that your order is aggregated with other CFD orders for the same Security. If we reasonable believe that the aggregation of your order will not work to the disadvantage of you and each of our clients, we may combine your order with those of other clients instead of placing them separately. However, on some occasions the effect of aggregation may work to your disadvantage.
4.8 Tax advice
We will not provide any tax advice. In addition, we shall not at any time be deemed to be under any duty to provide tax advice.
PART 5: EXECUTION ONLY SERVICES
We will place all orders in accordance with our Best Execution Policy. This means that when transmitting orders for execution with our third party clearers and executing brokers we will take all reasonable steps to achieve the best outcome for you, taking into account the nature of your order, the priorities you place upon us in filling those orders and the market in question. A full copy of this policy is available upon request. We will annually review this policy in order to ensure that it allows us to continue to ensure our third party clearers and executing brokers obtain the best results for our clients. On completing your account opening form you will have indicated whether you wish to open an “Advisory” or “Execution Only” account. By choosing an Execution Only service, you will either instruct the executing broker directly either on the telephone or via the online platforms, or if you have completed a dealing mandate for TCG Securities LLP, we will transmit the order on your behalf. Under the permissions granted by the FSA Equitrade Markets Ltd (acting as Principal for TCG Securities LLP) can arrange (or bring about) deals on your behalf. Although Equitrade Capital Ltd is not executing the transaction we are required to monitor your transactions to ensure that best execution is being carried out and that the third party clearers and executing brokers are operating according to their best execution policy which will be provided to you directly on completion of the third party clearer and executing broker terms of business. Please refer to our order execution policy (available on our website).
By choosing an Execution Only service Equitrade Markets Ltd will not advise you about the merits of a particular transaction if we reasonably believe, when you give the order for that transaction, that you are not expecting such advice and we are dealing on an execution only basis. Similarly, we will deal on an execution only basis where we believe that a particular transaction, as instructed you, is not in accordance with your risk objectives. In such circumstances we will inform you at the time that we will transmit your instructions on that basis.
PART 6: PERMITTED INVESTMENTS
6.0 Types of Investment
Unless you instruct us, in writing, to the contrary, you accept that we may advise you or arrange transactions on your behalf in the following types of investments;
(i) shares in British or foreign quoted companies.
(ii) debenture Stock, loan stock, bonds, notes, certificates of deposit, commercial paper or other debt instruments, including government, public agency, municipal and corporate issues.
(iii) warrants to subscribe for, or depository receipts or other types of instruments relating to investments under (i), (ii) and (iii) above.
(v) unquoted investments.
(vi) unregulated collective investment schemes including hedge funds.
6.1 Transactions not on regulated markets.
We may deal for you in circumstances in which the relevant deal is not regulated by the rules of any investment exchange.
6.2 Securities which are "geared"
Many companies, including investment trusts, may increase funds or raise additional capital by issuing debt or borrowing money using an investment strategy known as "gearing" This may enhance investment returns for investors but increases risk and may result in:
(i) movements in the price of the securities being more volatile than the movements in the price of the underlying investments;
(ii) the investment being subject to sudden and large falls in value; and
(iii) you may get back nothing at all if there is a sufficiently large fall in value in the investment.
TCG Securities LLP will endeavour to monitor levels of gearing and will seek to ensure that gearing ratios are appropriate for the client's risk and investment objectives when providing advice to clients.
6.3 Investments subject to Stabilisation.
We or our representatives may, from time to time, recommend transactions in securities to you, or carry out such transactions on your behalf, where the price may have been influenced by measures taken to stabilise it. You should read the explanation below carefully. This is designed to help you judge whether you wish your funds to be invested at all in such securities. Unless you instruct us in writing to the contrary, you accept that we may carry out any such transaction on your behalf involving securities, which are subject to stabilisation, without having to consult you first. If you wish to be consulted before we carry out any such transactions you should notify us at the time that you open your account.
6.4 What is Stabilisation?
Stabilisation enables the market price of a security to be maintained artificially during the period when a new issue of securities is sold to the public. Stabilisation may affect not only the price of the new issue but also the price of other securities relating to it. The FSA allows stabilisation in order to help counter the fact that, when a new issue comes into the market for the first time, the price can sometimes drop for a time before buyers are found. Stabilisation is being carried out by a 'stabilisation manager' (normally the firm chiefly responsible for bringing a new issue to market). As long as the stabilisation manager follows a strict set of rules, he is entitled to buy back securities that were previously sold to investors allotted to institutions, which have decided not to keep them. The effect of this may be to keep the price at a higher level than it would otherwise be during the period of stabilisation.
6.5 The Stabilisation Rules:
Limit the period when a stabilisation manager may stabilise a new issue; fix the price at which he may stabilise (in the case of shares and warrants but not bonds); and require him to disclose that he may be stabilising but not that he is actually doing so. The fact that a new issue or a related security is being stabilised should not betaken as any indication of the level of interest from investors, nor of the price at which they are prepared to buy the securities.
6.6 Illiquid Investments and Non Readily Realisable Investments. From time to time we may recommend an investment we believe is suitable for you although it is, or may later become illiquid, or not readily realisable. This means that it may therefore be difficult to sell the investment at a reasonable price and, in some circumstances, it may be difficult to sell it at any price. It may also be difficult to obtain reliable information about its value. We will always use reasonable care to execute such a transaction on terms that are fair and reasonable to you, including the price. We are always ready to explain how we arrived at a price, how it relates to the prices in any previous arm's length transactions where we have acted as agent for buyer or seller, and whether the firm or its associates previously held a position in the investment.
6.7 Penny Shares:
From time to time we may recommend penny shares if we reasonably believe that these may be suitable for you. There is an extra risk of losing money when shares are bought in some smaller companies, including penny shares. There is a big difference between the buying price and the selling price of these shares. If they have to be sold immediately, you may get back much less than you paid for them. The price may change quickly and it may go down as well as up. Penny Shares are defined by the FSA as a readily realisable security where the bid-offer spread is 10 per cent or more of the offer price, but not:
(i) a government and public security; or
(ii) a share in a company quoted on the Financial Times Stock Exchange
TOO Index; or
(iii) a security in a company, which, at the time that the firm deals or recommends to the client to deal in the investment, has a market capitalisation of £100 million or more.
6.8 Restrictions
If you do not inform us of any investments, type of investment or market on which you do not wish us to recommend to you or execute a transaction on your behalf then we may recommend or purchase any investment, on any market. If you are employed by a regulated business, you must obtain the necessary consents before asking us to execute transactions. If you are prohibited from dealing in certain securities, and if this should change, please give your broker written details. From time to time we have to sell securities without a client's consent - for example, following a demerger of a non-qualifying PEP/ISA investment.
6.9 Investing in Overseas Markets
From time to time we may recommend an investment in a security quoted on an overseas exchange or we may accept an order on an execution only basis. You accept that this may incur an agent's commission and exchange risk.
PART 7: CHARGES AND PAYMENTS
7.0 Charges
You will pay our charges as agreed with you from time to time. Any alteration to charges will be notified to you at or before the time of the change. Our charges will include any applicable value added tax, stamp duty, stamp duty reserve tax, industry levy, brokerage fees, transfer fees, registration fees and all other liabilities, charges, costs and expenses payable in connection with transactions effected on your behalf.
7.1 Remuneration and sharing charges
We may receive remuneration from, or share charges with, an associate or other third party in connection with Transactions carried out on your behalf. Details of such remuneration or sharing arrangements will be made available to you on request.
7.2 Default interest
If you fail to pay us any amount when it is due, we reserve the right to charge you interest (both before and after any judgement) on any such unpaid amount calculated at the rate as reasonably determined by us
to be the cost of funding such overdue amount. Interest will accrue on a daily basis and will be due and payable by you as a separate debt.
7.5 Taxes
You shall at all times be fully responsible for payment of all taxes due and for the making of all related claims whether for exemption from withholding taxes or otherwise, for filing any and/or tax returns and for providing any relevant tax authorities with all necessary information in relation to any investment business we carry on for or with you or any investments which we hold on your behalf.
PART 8: MATERIAL INTERESTS AND CONFIDENTIALITY
8.0 Material interests
Your attention is drawn to the fact that when we give you advice or deal with you or for you, we or an associate or some other person connected with us may have an interest, relationship or arrangement that is material. Without limiting the nature of such interests, examples include where we or an associate could be:-
a. dealing in the investment, a related investment or an asset underlying the investment, as principal for our (or its) own account or that of someone else. This could include selling to you or buying from you [and also dealing with or using the services of an intermediate broker or other agent who may be an associate];
b. matching (e.g. by way of a cross) your Transaction with that of another customer by acting on his behalf as well as yours;
c. buying from you and selling immediately to another customer, or vice versa;
d. holding a position (including a short position) in the investment concerned, a related investment or asset underlying the investment;
e. quoting prices to the market in the investment, a related investment or asset underlying the investment;
f. advising and providing other services to associates or other customers who may have interests in investments or underlying assets which conflict with your own. You accept that we and our associates may have interests which conflict with your interests and may owe duties which conflict with duties which would otherwise be owed to you, and consent to our acting in any manner which we consider appropriate in such cases.
8.1 No liability to disclose or account
We will comply with Applicable Regulations binding on us, but we shall be under no further duty to disclose any interest to you, including any benefit, profit, commission or other remuneration made or received by reason of any Transaction or any matching transaction.
PART 9: CONFLICT OF INTERESTS
9.0 Disclosure to you
We shall not be obliged to disclose to you or take into consideration any fact, matter or finding which might involve a breach of duty or confidence to any other person, or which comes to the notice of any of our directors, officers, employees or agents but does not come to the actual notice of the individual or individuals dealing with you.
9.1 General
We or IG or its associates may provide services or enter into transactions in relation to which we or IG or its associates has, directly or indirectly, a material interest or a relationship of any description with a third party which may involve a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest with you. A summary of IG’s conflicts policy is set out in IG’s terms and conditions which have been provided to you with this application pack.
9.2 Soft Commission
We may from time to time deal on your behalf with a party with whom we have an agreement which permits us (or another member of our group) to receive goods or services in return for transacting investment business with them.
PART 10: PERSONAL DATA
10.0 Disclosure to others
We will treat all information we hold about you as private and confidential even when you are no longer a customer. We will not disclose any information we hold about you to others except: (i) to the extent we are required to do so by any Applicable Regulations; (ii) where there is a duty to the public to disclose; (iii) where our interests require disclosure; or (iv) at your request or with your consent.
10.1 Our use of information
You agree that we may hold and process by computer or otherwise any information we hold about you and may use any of that information to administer and operate your account and to provide any service to you, to monitor and analyse the conduct of your account, to assess any credit limit or other credit decision (as well as the interest rate, fees and other charges to be applied to your account) and to enable us to carry out statistical and other analysis. You agree that we may disclose that information to other companies in our group for these purposes.
10.2 Disclosure of information
We may also disclose information we hold about you to those who provide services to us or act as our agents, to any person to whom we transfer or propose to transfer any of our rights or duties under this Agreement and to licensed credit reference agencies or other organisations that help us and others make credit decisions and reduce the incidence of fraud or in the course of carrying out identity, fraud prevention or credit control checks. In respect of a joint account, we may disclose to any of you information obtained by us from any of you in relation to the account.
10.3 Marketing
Subject to information provided by you in the account opening form, we may analyse and use the information we hold about you to enable us to give you information (by post, telephone, email or other medium, using the contact details you have given us) about products and services offered by us (or by other companies in our group or selected third parties) which we believe may be of interest to you. If you do not wish to receive marketing information, please let us know by contacting us in writing.
10.4 Access to information
You may have a right of access to some or all of the information we hold about you, or to have inaccurate information corrected, under data protection law. If you wish to exercise either of these rights, please contact us in writing.
10.5 Transfer of information
You agree that we may also transfer information we hold about you to any country, including countries outside the European Economic Area which may not have data protection laws, for any of the purposes described in this clause.
PART 11: INSTRUCTIONS AND BASIS OF DEALING
11.0 Placing of instructions
You may give us instructions in writing (including fax), by electronic medium (including SMS text message, Email or Messenger systems) or orally (including by telephone), unless we tell you that instructions can only be given in a particular way. If any instructions are received by us by telephone, or other medium we may ask you to confirm such instructions in writing. We shall be authorised to follow instructions notwithstanding your failure to confirm them in writing.
11.1 Authority
We shall be entitled to act for you upon instructions given or purporting to be given by you or any person authorised on your behalf without further enquiry as to the genuineness, authority or identity of the person giving or purporting to give such instructions.
11.2 Cancellation of instructions
We can only cancel your instructions if we have not acted upon those instructions.
11.3 Right not to accept orders
We may, but shall not be obliged to, accept instructions to enter into a Transaction. If we decline to enter into a proposed Transaction, we shall not be obliged to give a reason. We shall promptly notify you accordingly.
11.4 Aggregation of orders
We may combine your order with orders of other clients. By combining your orders with those of other customers we must reasonably believe that this is in the overall best interests of our customers. However, on occasions aggregation may result in you obtaining a less favourable price. Where we aggregate your order with orders of other customers, you agree that allocation of the investments concerned may be done within a period of five Business Days after the order has been filled.
11.5 Confirmations
Confirmations will delivered to you by the executing broker and shall, in the absence of manifest error, be conclusive and binding on you, unless we or they receive from you objection in writing within five Business Days of dispatch to you or we or they notify you of an error in the confirmation within the same period.
11.7 Performance and settlement
Your agreement for clearance and settlement of transactions is covered in your agreement with IG, and TCG Securities LLP without limitation accepts no liability for any clearance and/or settlement of your transactions or the terms agreed between you and IG. You will promptly deliver any instructions, money, documents or property deliverable by you under a Transaction in accordance with that Transaction as modified by any instructions given by us for the purpose of enabling us to perform our obligations under the relevant matching transaction on an Exchange or with an intermediate broker.
11.8 Amendments
Once given, instructions may only be withdrawn or amended with our consent.
11.9 Third Party brokers and other agents
By signing this agreement you accept that Equitrade Markets Ltd, its directors, officers or agents shall not be liable whatsoever for any breach of your terms of agreement with IG, and we have no obligation to ensure that you or any agents you may act for or on behalf of comply with the terms of that agreement. By signing this agreement you accept that Equitrade Markets Ltd is not in any way bound by the terms of your agreement with IG. We may, at our entire discretion, arrange for any Transaction to be effected with or through the agency of an intermediate broker, who may be an associate of ours, and may not be in the United Kingdom. Neither we nor our respective directors, officers, employees or agents will be liable to you for any act or omission of an intermediate broker or agent. No responsibility will be accepted for intermediate brokers or agents selected by you.
11.9.1 Position limits
We may require you to limit the number of open positions which you may have with us at any time and we may in our sole discretion close out any one or more Transactions in order to ensure that such position limits are maintained.
11.9.2 Market abuse and conduct
You shall observe the standard of behaviour reasonably expected of persons in your position and not take any step which would cause us to fail to observe the standard of behaviour reasonably expected of persons in our position.
PART 12: SETTLEMENT
12.0 Settlement of Transactions
All transactions will be due for settlement in accordance with market requirements (as shown on the relevant contract note or advice). You undertake to procure that IG will receive all cash and securities when due with respect to any transaction which is settled on your behalf and that all cash or investments held by, or transferred to IG will be and remain free of any charge or encumbrance.
All payments due to IG will be made without set-off, counterclaim or deduction. All cash and investments held or transferred to IG (or its nominees) will be subject to a first fixed charge by way of security for your obligations to IG.
It is your responsibility to ensure that all money due to IG and all documents are received by IG by the due date to enable settlement of a transaction we arrange on your behalf.
12.1 Late Settlement
If you fail to pay an amount due, on an ordinary dealing account, interest will be payable by you at a rate of 10% over Bank of Scotland Plc Base Rate as from the due settlement date. This interest rate will be applicable to all debits arising on your account.
12.2 Non Standard Settlement
TCG Securities LLP shall not be liable for any price variance relating to transactions requiring non-standard settlement.
12.3 Currency Risk
All currency exchange risk in respect of any transaction in overseas investments shall be borne by you.
12.4 Aggregation of Orders
If we reasonably believe we can obtain a more favourable price for your orders, we may combine them with those of associated companies and persons connected with us, and of other clients, instead of arranging them separately. However, on some occasions this may result in a less favourable price. We will not aggregate an order with another order unless we have reasonable grounds to believe aggregation will work to your advantage.
12.5 Certificated Holdings
Certificated holdings need to be transferred into a nominee account prior to sale in order to meet settlement deadlines. This may result in a delay in effecting the sale. TCG Securities LLP will not be liable for any loss suffered by you as a result of a delay in effecting the sale.
PART 13: YOUR MONEY
TCG Securities LLP is not authorised to hold client funds. Your money will be held with IG as client money in a segregated bank account, in accordance with the rules of the FSA, which among other things, require them to hold your money in a client bank account. Your funds will be segregated from IG own funds at an approved bank, as defined in the FSA Handbook.
PART 14: MONEY LAUNDERING RULES
In order to open your account we are obliged by our regulator, the Financial Services Authority, to verify your identity. The details you supply may therefore be checked on our behalf by Equifax and/or Experian (this is not a credit check). We will also require a certified copy of drivers license or passport, and a utility bill dated within the last six months.
PART 15: DEFAULT AND TERMINATION
15.1 Termination
Unless required by Applicable Regulations, either party may terminate this Agreement (and the relationship between us) by giving 10 days written notice of termination on the other. We may terminate this Agreement immediately if you fail to observe or perform any provision of this Agreement or in the event of your insolvency
15.2 Existing rights
Termination shall not affect then outstanding rights and obligations (in particular relating to the clauses headed Exclusions, Limitations and Indemnity, Miscellaneous and Governing Law and Jurisdiction and Transactions which shall continue to be governed by this Agreement and the particular clauses agreed between us in relation to such Transactions until all obligations have been fully performed.
PART 16: EXCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS AND INDEMNITY
16.1 General exclusion
Neither we nor our directors, officers, employees or agents shall be liable for any direct or indirect losses, damages, costs or expenses incurred or suffered by you under this Agreement (including any Transaction or where we have declined to enter into a proposed Transaction) unless arising directly from our or their respective gross negligence, wilful default or fraud. In no circumstances shall we have any liability for consequential or special damage. Nothing in this Agreement will limit our liability for death or personal injury resulting from our negligence.
Without limiting the scope of Clause 12.1, neither we nor our directors, officers, employees or agents shall be liable for any;
(a) representation (other than a fraudulent misrepresentation) that is not set out in this agreement
(b) act or omission of any third party executing, clearing or settlement broker or agent;
(c) loss caused by the exercise or attempted exercise of, failure to exercise, or delay in exercising a right or remedy;
(d) adverse tax implications of any Transaction whatsoever
(e) loss suffered as a result of relying on a confirmation where you knew or ought to have known that it contained an error or;
(f) loss suffered as a result of any delay or change in market conditions before any particular Transaction is effected.
16.2 Tax implications
Without limitation, we do not accept liability for any adverse tax implications of any Transaction whatsoever.
16.3 Changes in the market
Without limitation, we do not accept any liability by reason of any delay or change in market conditions before any particular Transaction is effected.
16.4 Force majeure
We shall not be liable to you for any partial or non-performance of our obligations hereunder by reason of any cause beyond our reasonable control, including without limitation any breakdown, malfunction or failure of transmission, communication or computer facilities, industrial action, acts and regulations of any governmental or supra national bodies or authorities or the failure of any relevant intermediate broker, agent or principal of ourselves, custodian, sub custodian, dealer, exchange, clearing house or regulatory or self-regulatory organisation, for any reason, to perform its obligations.
16.5 Liability and Indemnity
In accepting these terms and conditions you agree to indemnify TCG Securities LLP (and Equitrade Markets Ltd) against any liability (including legal costs) incurred arising from the provision of its services in relation to your account, any breach by you of the provisions of this agreement or the IG agreement or any failure to make delivery or payment when due. Furthermore we shall not be liable for any losses you incur if we fail, interrupt or delay in performing our obligations under this agreement in order to avoid damage to Equitrade Capital Ltd employees, property or reputation. TCG Securities LLP (and Equitrade Markets Ltd) shall not be liable for loss arising other than as a result of its own negligence or wilful default or contravention of FSA rules and, in any event, will not be liable for any indirect or consequential loss (including loss of profit), TCG Securities LLP (and Equitrade Markets Ltd) shall have no liability for any market or trading losses you may incur.
16.6 Assignment
Your acceptance of these terms and conditions is personal to you and your personal representatives and your rights and obligations may not be transferred or assigned to any third party without our prior written agreement. We may assign our rights and obligations as set out in these terms and conditions under this Agreement to any person connected with us or to any successor company on giving written notice to you to that effect.
16.7 Illegality
If any provision of these terms and conditions or any part thereof shall become or be declared illegal, invalid, or unenforceable for any reason whatsoever, such term, provision or part shall be divisible from these terms and conditions and shall be deemed to be deleted from these terms and conditions.
16.8 Variation
You accept that TCG Securities LLP may change or add to any of the terms and conditions. In the event of any variation or amendment of the agreement we will send you a written notice of the change or addition which shall include the date from which the change or addition shall be effective from. Please note that we shall not give you less than 10 working days notice of any amendments, unless it is impractical to do so. You are deemed to have consented to any alteration that may be effected by these terms and conditions if we do not receive notification otherwise from you, in writing, within the time that the changes were notified to you and their coming into effect.
16.9 Account Closure
Both you and TCG Securities LLP have the right to close your account with us. Such closure will be without prejudice to the completion of transactions already initiated. If you wish to close your account you should notify us, in writing, of your intention to do so, which will be effective immediately upon receipt by Equitrade Capital Ltd. Should we wish to terminate this agreement we will give you 10 days notice of our intention to do so. Any charges accrued to TCG Securities LLP will become due and payable at the expiry of this notice period.
16.9.1 Cancellation
You may cancel an agreement for any of our services within 10 days of commencement irrespective of any rights under the Distance Marketing Directive. Such notice of termination must be in writing and we will return to you your money or assets held by us. You should be aware that any reasonable out of pocket expenses, e.g. relating to the transfer of securities, will not be refunded. Also, if any investment transactions have been carried out, you will be liable for any price movement unless it involves a product which carries a right of cancellation which may apply.
16.9.2 Jurisdiction
These arrangements are governed by and shall be construed in accordance with English law and you hereby submit to the nonexclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.
PART 17: MISCELLANEOUS
17.0 Amendments
We may amend this Agreement where the amendment does not materially affect your rights hereunder, by not less than 10 business days written notice to you, except where it is impracticable in the circumstances. Such amendment will become effective on the date specified in the notice. Any other amendment must be agreed in writing between us. Unless otherwise agreed, an amendment will not affect any outstanding order or Transaction or any legal rights or obligations which may already have arisen.
17.1 Notices
Unless otherwise agreed, all notices, instructions and other communications to be given by one of us to the other under this Agreement shall be given to the address or fax number and to
the individual or department specified in the account opening form in respect of you and or by notice in writing by such party.
a. Any notice, instruction or other communication shall, be deemed to take effect in the case of fax, on dispatch and, in the case of airmail or first class pre-paid post, five Business Days after dispatch. Notices, instructions and other communications made pursuant to this Agreement or any Transaction shall not be effective if given by electronic mail.
b. Each notice, instruction or other communication to you (except confirmations of trade, statements of account, and margin calls) shall be conclusive unless written notice of objection is received by us within five Business Days of the date on which such document was deemed to have been received. You will notify us of any change of your address in accordance with this clause.
17.2 Complaints procedure
We have internal procedures for handling complaints fairly and promptly. You may submit a complaint to us, for example by letter, telephone, e- mail, or in person. We will send you a written acknowledgement of your complaint within five days of receipt enclosing details of our complaints procedure. Please contact us if you would like further details regarding our complaints procedures which includes our Complaints Handling Procedures booklet, write to: The Complaints Officer, TCG Securities LLP, 1 Liverpool Street, London.
17.3 Time of essence
Time shall be of the essence in respect of all obligations of yours under this Agreement (including any Transaction).
17.4 Joint and several liability
If you are a partnership, or otherwise comprise more than one person, your liability under this Agreement shall be joint and several. In the event of the death, bankruptcy, winding-up or dissolution of any one or more of such persons, then (but without prejudice to the above or our rights in respect of such person and his successors) the obligations and rights of all other such persons under this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect.
17.5 Rights and remedies
The rights and remedies provided under this Agreement are cumulative and not exclusive of those provided by law. We shall be under no obligation to exercise any right or remedy either at all or in a manner or at a time beneficial to you. No failure by us to exercise or delay by us in exercising any of our rights under this Agreement (including any Transaction) or otherwise shall operate as a waiver of those or any other rights or remedies. No single or partial exercise of a right or remedy shall prevent further exercise of that right or remedy or the exercise of another right or remedy.
17.6 Set-off
Without prejudice to any other rights to which we may be entitled we may at any time and without notice to you set off any amount (whether actual or contingent, present or future) at any time owing between you and us.
7.7 Partial invalidity
If, at any time, any provision of this Agreement is or becomes illegal, invalid or unenforceable in any respect under the law of any jurisdiction, neither the legality, validity or enforceability of the remaining provisions of this Agreement nor the legality, validity or enforceability of such provision under the law of any other jurisdiction shall in any way be affected or impaired.
17.8 Recording of calls
We may record telephone conversations without use of a warning tone to ensure that the material terms of the Transaction, and any other material information relating to the Transaction is promptly and accurately recorded. Such records will be our sole property and accepted by you as evidence of the orders or instructions given.
17.9 Our records
Our records, unless shown to be wrong, will be evidence of your dealings with us in connection with our services. You will not object to the admission of our records as evidence in any legal proceedings because such records are not originals, are not in writing or are documents produced by a computer. You will not rely on us to comply with your record keeping obligations, although records may be made available to you on request at our absolute discretion.
17.9.1 Your records
You agree to keep adequate records in accordance with Applicable Regulations to demonstrate the nature of orders submitted and the time at which such orders are submitted.
17.9.2 Third Party Rights
A person who is not a party to this Agreement has no right under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any of this Agreement.
17.9.3 Co-operation for proceedings
If any action or proceeding is brought by or against us in relation to this Agreement or arising out of any act or omission by us required or permitted under this Agreement, you agree to co-operate with us to the fullest extent possible in the defence or prosecution of such action or proceeding.
17.9.4 Risk Warning
Trading in Contracts for Difference may only be suitable for investors with experience and residual liquid disposable capital. You may lose all of your initial stake through the use of leverage and may be required to make additional payments by way of margin on a frequent and sometimes daily basis. Failure to do so can result in the closure of part or all of your position.
However, you can reduce risk by using stop losses and TCG Securities LLP does recommend that you use them. The value of an investment in a Contract for Difference may be affected by a variety of factors, including but not limited to, price volatility, market volume, foreign exchange rates and liquidity. CFD’s are a short term trading tool and commission is charged on the leveraged amount (not the deposit) and therefore costs can build up when frequently traded. You should evaluate potential losses against affordability. Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance.
PART 18: REGULATORY AND OTHER MATTERS
18.0 Periodic Statements and Valuations
You will receive a custody statement from IG on a quarterly basis detailing all investments held on your behalf in their safekeeping. This statement will also provide details of any cash balance held for you as client money by IG. The value of any stock held as collateral, as identified on the annual statement/valuation is calculated using the mid-market closing price at the close of business on the date of the valuation. Holdings are reported on a trade date basis.
18.2 Financial Services Compensation Scheme
Equitrade Markets Ltd is a participant in the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which, subject to certain exceptions, provides limited compensation in respect of eligible liabilities if we are in default. This scheme currently covers 100% of the first £30,000 of a valid claim plus 90% of the next £20,000, up to a maximum payment of £48,000. The right to claim under this scheme will only arise if you qualify as an eligible investor, which, for the purpose of this scheme, applies only to Retail Customers as defined by the FSA. Further information can be obtained from the FSA or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
18.3 Marketing
We will send you details of our new products, which, we believe, may be of interest to you. If you do not wish to receive marketing information or if your details change, please notify us in writing.
18.4 Credit Checking
In connection with this arrangement, we may carry out a credit check with a licensed credit reference agency, which will retain a record of that search. This information may be used by other stockbrokers, financial institutions, etc in assessing applications for credit by you and members of your household, and for occasional debt tracing and fraud prevention purposes.
18.5 Confidentiality
We have responsibilities under money laundering regulations to verify your identity. We may need to make certain enquires and obtain certain information from you for that purpose. You confirm that all information you supply will be accurate and accept that we may need to pass this information to a third party to comply with our reporting requirements.
18.6 Data Protection Act 1998
We may use, store or otherwise process personal information provided by you or us in connection with the provision of our services for the purposes of providing the services, administering your account or for purposes ancillary thereto, including, without limitation, for the purposes of credit enquiries or assessments. The information we hold about you is confidential and will not be used for any purpose other than in connection with the provision of our services. Information of a confidential nature will be treated as such provided that such information is not already in the public domain. Information of a confidential nature will only be disclosed outside the group of companies to which we belong in the following circumstances: where required by law or if requested by any regulatory authority or exchange having control or jurisdiction over us (or any respective associate); to investigate or prevent fraud or other illegal activity; to any third party in connection with the provision of services to you by us; for purposes ancillary to the provision of the services or the administration of your account, including, without limitation, for the purposes of credit enquiries or assessments; if it is in the public interest to disclose such information; at your request or with your consent. Please be advised that, by signing your account Opening Form, you will be consenting to the transmittal of your data outside of the EU/EEA. In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, you are entitled, on payment of a fee, to a copy of the information we hold about you. In the first instance, you should direct any such request to us. You should let us know if you think any information we hold about you is inaccurate, so that we may correct it. In accordance with the record retention statement below, you will not be at liberty to request the destruction or deletion of any record pertaining to yourself unless we are required to do so by force of law or other regulatory requirement
18.7 Record Retention
In accordance with legal and regulatory requirements, TCG Securities LLP will retain your records, for a minimum period of six years following the termination of any relationship between us. This period may be extended by force of law, regulatory requirement or agreement amongst us.
PART 19: GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION
19.0 Governing law
A Transaction which is subject to the Rules of an Exchange shall be governed by the law applicable to it under those Rules. Subject thereto, this Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law.
19.1 Jurisdiction
Each of the parties irrevocably agrees for our benefit that the courts of England shall have jurisdiction to determine any suit, action or other proceedings relating to this Agreement ("Proceedings") and irrevocably submits to the jurisdiction of such courts (provided that this shall not prevent us from bringing an action in the courts of any other jurisdiction); and b. waives any objection which it may have at any time to the laying of venue of any Proceedings brought in any such court and agrees not to claim that such Proceedings have been brought in an inconvenient forum or that such court does not have jurisdiction over it.
19.2 Waiver of immunity and consent to enforcement
You irrevocably waive to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, with respect to yourself and your revenue and assets (irrespective of their use or intended use) all immunity on the grounds of sovereignty or other similar grounds from (i) suit, (ii) jurisdiction of any courts, (iii) relief by way of injunction, order for specific performance or for recovery of property, (iv) attachment of assets (whether before or after judgment) and (v) execution or enforcement of any judgment to which you or your revenues or assets might otherwise be entitled in any Proceedings in the courts of any jurisdiction and irrevocably agree that you will not claim any immunity in any Proceedings. You consent generally in respect of any Proceedings to the giving of any relief or the issue of any process in connection with such Proceedings, including, without limitation, the making, enforcement or execution against any property whatsoever (irrespective of its use or intended use) of any order or judgment which may be made or given in such Proceedings.
19.3 Service of process
If you are situated outside England and Wales, process by which any Proceedings in England are begun may be served on you by being delivered to [the address nominated by you for this purpose in the account opening form]. This does not affect our right to serve process in another manner permitted by law.
PART 20: RISK WARNING NOTICE
This notice provided by TCG Securities LLP is being sent to you as a Retail Customer in compliance with the Rules of the Financial Services Authority (“FSA”). Retail Customers are afforded a greater protection under these rules than other customers, and you should ensure that your broker tells you what these are. This notice does not disclose all of the risks and other significant aspects of financial products traded on margin such as futures, options and contracts for differences. You should not deal in financial products traded on margin unless you understand the nature of the contract you are entering into and the extent of your exposure to risk. You should also be satisfied that the contract is suitable for you in the light of your circumstances and financial position. Certain strategies, such as a “spread” position or a “straddle”, may be as risky as a simple “long” or “short” position.
Whilst some financial products can be utilised for the management of investment risk, some are unsuitable for many investors. Different instruments involve different levels of exposure to risk, and in deciding whether to trade in such instruments you should be aware of the following points.
1. CONTINGENT LIABILITY TRANSACTIONS
Contingent liability transactions, such as financial products traded on margin, will require you to make a series of payments against the purchase price, instead of paying the whole purchase price immediately.
If you trade in futures, contracts for differences or sell options you may sustain a total loss of the margin you deposit with the broker to establish or maintain a position. If the market moves against you, you may be called upon to pay substantial additional monies or margin at short notice to maintain the position. If you fail to do so within the time required, your position may be liquidated at a loss and you will be liable for any resulting deficit.
Even if a transaction is not margined, it may still carry an obligation to make further payments in certain circumstances over and above any amount paid when you entered the contract.
The broker will carry out margined or other contingent liability transactions with or for you whenever possible on or under the rules of a recognised or designated investment exchange. However, contingent liability transactions entered into by you which are not traded on or under the rules of a recognised or designated investment exchange (such as foreign exchange transactions) may expose you to substantially greater risks.
2. FUTURES
Transactions in futures involve the obligation to make, or to take, delivery of the underlying asset of the contract at a future date, or in some cases to settle your position with cash. They carry a high degree of risk. The “gearing” or “leverage” often obtainable in futures trading means that a small deposit or down payment can lead to large losses as well as gains. It also means that a relatively small market movement can lead to a proportionately much larger movement in the value of your investment, and this can work against you as well as for you. Futures transactions have a contingent liability, and you should be aware of the implications of this, in particular the margining requirements, which are set out in paragraph 1 above.
3. OPTIONS
There are many different types of options with different characteristics subject to different conditions: -
BUYING OPTIONS
Buying options involves less risk than selling options because, if the price of the underlying asset moves against you, you can simply allow the option to lapse. The maximum loss is limited to the premium or amount paid to acquire the option, plus any commission or other transaction charges. However, if you buy a call option on a futures contract and you later exercise the option, you will acquire a futures contract and this will expose you to the risks described under points 1 and 2 above.
WRITING OPTIONS
If you write an option, the risk involved is considerably greater than buying options, you may be liable for margin to maintain your position and a loss may be sustained well in excess of any premium received.
By writing an option, you accept a legal obligation to purchase or sell the underlying asset if the option is exercised against you, however far the market price has moved away from the exercise price. If you already own the underlying asset which you have contracted to sell (known as “covered call options”) the risk is reduced. If you do not own the underlying asset (known as “uncovered call options”) the risk can be unlimited. Very experienced persons should contemplate writing uncovered options, and then only after securing full details of the applicable conditions and potential risk exposure.
4. CONTRACTS FOR DIFFERENCES(“CFD’s”)
Stocks or equities traded on margin are referred to as CFD’s. CFD’s can also be options and futures on the FTSE 100 index or any other index, as well as currency and interest rate swaps. However, unlike other futures and options, these contracts can only be settled in cash. Investing in CFD’s carries the same risks, as investing in futures or options contracts and you should be aware of these as set out in point 2 and 3 above. Transactions in contracts for differences may also have a contingent liability and you should be aware of the implications of this as set out in point 1 above.
5. FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Transactions in Foreign Exchange contracts carry a high degree of risk. The “gearing” or “leverage” often obtainable in Foreign Exchange trading means that a relatively small market movement can lead to a proportionately much larger movement in the value of your liability. You should be Aware of the implications of this, in particular the margining requirements which, by signing below, will be confirmation by you that this has been explained to you by the broker or a broker introducing your account to the broker.
6. O.T.C. / OFF EXCHANGE TRANSACTIONS
It may not always be apparent whether Foreign Exchange Contracts are effected on exchange or if they are an O.T.C off exchange transaction. the broker has made it clear to you if you are entering into an off exchange O.T.C. transaction. While some off exchange markets are highly liquid, some O.T.C. Contracts may involve greater risk than investing in exchange products because it may be impossible to liquidate an existing position, to assess the value of the position arising from an off exchange transaction, or to assess the exposure to risk. For example, although Foreign Exchange markets are highly liquid, bid and offer prices need not be quoted, and, even where they are, they will be established by dealers in these instruments and consequently it may be difficult to establish what is a fair price.
7. COLLATERAL
If you deposit Collateral as security with the broker, the way in which it will be treated will vary according to the type of transaction and where it is traded. There could be significant differences in the treatment of your Collateral depending on whether you are trading on a recognised or designated investment exchange, under the rules of that exchange (and associated clearing house), or O.T.C. off exchange Contracts. Deposited Collateral may lose its identity as your property once dealings on your behalf are undertaken. Even if your dealings should ultimately prove profitable, you may not get back the same assets which you deposited and you may have to accept payment in cash. You should ascertain from the broker how your Collateral will be dealt with.
8. COMMISSIONS
Before you begin to trade, you should obtain details of all commissions and other charges for which you will be liable. With respect to Foreign Exchange trading, commissions are often included in the transaction price. If this is the case, it is important to ascertain from THE BROKER the size of the buy/sell spread quoted.
9. STOP-LOSS ORDERS
Placing a stop-loss order will not necessarily limit your losses to the intended amounts, because market conditions may make it impossible to execute such an order at the stipulated price.
10. CLEARING HOUSE PROTECTIONS
On many securities and futures exchanges, the performance of a transaction by the broker (or any third party with whom it is dealing on your behalf) is “guaranteed” by the exchange or its clearing house. However, you should be aware that such a guarantee does not apply to Foreign Exchange transactions since there is no clearing house for Foreign Exchange /O.T.C. off-exchange instruments as they are not traded under the rules of a recognised or designated investment exchange.
11. FOREIGN MARKETS
Some foreign markets will involve different risks than other markets and in some cases the risks will be greater. On request, the broker will provide an explanation of the relevant risks and protection (if any) which will operate in any relevant foreign markets, including the extent to which the broker will accept liability for any default of a foreign broker or counterpart through whom the broker deals. The potential for profit or loss from transactions on foreign markets or in foreign denominated contracts will be affected by fluctuations in foreign exchange rates.
12. INSOLVENCY
Insolvency or default, of any other brokers involved with your transaction(s), may lead to positions being liquidated or closed out without your consent. In certain circumstances, you may not get back the actual assets which you lodged as Collateral and you may have to accept any available payment in cash. You also understand that the broker does not accept liability for any insolvency of, or default by, other brokers involved with your transactions.
Research Terms & Conditions
TCG Securities LLP Research Service is produced by TCG Securities LLP, which is an appointed representative of Equitrade Markets Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
TCG Securities LLP Research Service is provided by TCG Securities LLP for information purposes only. The research and analysis is provided to help you make your own trading decisions, it is general in nature and does not constitute an offer or a recommendation to enter into any transaction. The opinions contained in the Report were considered by TCG Securities LLP to be valid when published. Whilst TCG Securities LLP has taken all reasonable steps to ensure this information is correct, TCG Securities LLP does not offer any warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of such information. Any person placing reliance on the Report to undertake trading does so entirely at their own risk and TCG Securities LLP does not accept any liability as a result.
Securities and Derivatives markets may be subject to rapid and unexpected price movements and past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance. Before trading Contracts for Difference, ensure you fully understand the risks involved. Trading in these markets is generally considered to be suitable only for the more experienced investor as it carries a high degree of risk. The investor may not receive back the amount of his original investment and in certain circumstances may be liable for a greater sum than this. Foreign currency denominated securities and financial instruments are subject to fluctuations in exchange rates that may have a positive or negative effect on their value. Trading in Contracts for Difference carries a high degree of risk and is generally considered suitable only for the more experienced investor. Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance. Leveraged products carry a high degree of risk for your capital, and in some circumstances you may be liable for a greater sum than your initial capital invested. If in any doubt, please seek independent advice.
Some services on this web site are not available to private inexperienced investors or are password protected to restrict access. Services may also not be available to certain investors due to regulatory or other constraints either in the UK or elsewhere. You are advised that most services, including full subscription to TCG Securities LLP Research Service, are only available following completion of TCG Securities LLP account opening requirements. Further information is available on request at info@tcgsecurities.co.uk or by calling . TCG Securities LLP will treat your personal data in line with it's Privacy Policy. Please be aware our telephone lines may be recorded for monitoring or training purposes.
Disclaimer/Privacy Policy.
This research has not been prepared in accordance with regulatory requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research.
Recommendations are given in good faith, but without legal responsibility and are subject to change without notice. The information does not constitute advice or a personal recommendation or take into account the particular investment objectives, financial situations or needs of individual clients.
You are recommended to seek advice concerning suitability from your investment advisor. Investors should be aware that past performance is not necessarily a guide to the future and that the price of shares, and the income derived from them, may fall as well as rise and the amount realised may be less than the original sum invested. This research is based on current public information that we consider reliable, but we do not represent it is accurate or complete and it should not be relied upon as such.
TCG Securities LLP and its connected companies, their directors, members, employees and members of their families may have positions in the securities or derivatives (including options and warrants) thereof of covered companies referred to in this research. As a result, investors should be aware that the firm may have a conflict of interest that could affect the objectivity, independence and impartiality of this report. Investors should consider this report as only a single factor in making their investment decision.
This research is not an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or sell any security in any jurisdiction where such an offer or solicitation would be illegal. Our research is distributed primarily electronically and, in some cases, in printed form. Copyright 2008 All rights reserved. No part of this report may be reproduced or distributed in any manner without the written permission of TCG Securities LLP. TCG Securities LLP specifically prohibits the re-distribution of this report, via the internet or otherwise, and accepts no liability whatsoever for the actions of third parties in this respect.
This document is issued by TCG Securities LLP, an Appointed Representative of Equitrade Markets, Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
TCG Securities LLP website will ask for some personal details in some parts of the site. However, any information gathered will be used solely by TCG Securities LLP for marketing purposes and or to evaluate the use of the site, your details will not be passed to any other company except to our own affiliates and agents.
Disclaimer/Privacy Policy
TCG Securities LLP website will ask for some personal details in some parts of the site.
However, any information gathered will be used solely by TCG Securities LLP for marketing purposes and or to evaluate the use of the site, your details will not be passed to any other company except to our own affiliates and agents.
Information contained in this website has been issued by TCG Securities LLP is an Appointed Representative of Equitrade Markets Ltd (FSA No. 441877), which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority in the UK. Your usage of this site is subject to the conditions and limitations stated below and your access and usage of this site means that the you agree to the following conditions.
By accessing and using the information on this Website you (the User) agree and consent as follows: -
1. TCG Securities LLP is a firm authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority to provide advice and act as an arranger of Contracts for Difference, Spread Betting, Futures, Options and Foreign Exchange. The advice is offered without regard to the specific circumstances of individual investors. Before trading or completing any investment transaction in any area covered by this Website the User should seek independent professional advice, if in doubt.
2. TCG Securities LLP accepts no responsibility or liability for any use the User may make of the information on this Website or any associated services advertised on this Website. Advertisements on this Website do not constitute an endorsement by TCG Securities LLP or its editor of the services or products advertised.
3. TCG Securities LLP warns the User that CFD trading carries a high level of risk to the capital of those who trade or bet, and is not suitable for all investors. Those who trade CFDs should only speculate with money they can afford to lose. Before placing any trades they should ensure they fully understand the risks, and seek independent advice if necessary.
4. All registered users of the TCG Securities LLP website are treated as retail investors, and therefore they are afforded the greatest protection available under FSA rules.
5. TCG Securities LLP does not warrant the accuracy or reliability of any statements or opinions displayed on this Website.
6. TCG Securities LLP takes no responsibility of any kind for any third party contents or other sites, which the User is able to access through this Website.
7. TCG Securities LLP reserves the right without notice to change the content, presentation and/or facilities of this Website.
8. The information on this website is intended for use by UK residents who are 18 years or older. TCG Securities LLP is a trading name of TCG Securities LLP Markets Limited, a firm authorised regulated by The Financial Services Authority to give investment advice in the United Kingdom. TCG Securities LLP accepts no liability for compliance with the regulatory requirements or laws of any other country or for the use of the information by any person whose country of residence prohibits the use of such information.
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13. These terms and any claim based on use of information from this Website shall be governed by English laws and the parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
Order Execution Policy
1.0 Introduction
We have a general duty to conduct our business with you honestly, fairly, and
professionally and to act in your best interests when receiving and transmitting orders.
We are required to take all reasonable steps to obtain the best possible result for our clients taking into account factors such as price, costs, speed, likelihood of execution and settlement, size, nature or any other consideration relevant to a transmitting an order for execution.
2.0 Does TCG Securities LLP have a duty to provide Best Execution?
No. TCG Securities LLP does not deal as Principal and does not ‘execute’ client orders but ‘receives’ and ‘transmits’ orders on behalf of its clients with ‘entities’ also referred to as ‘clearing and executing brokers’ i.e TCG Securities LLP is “Arranging” and not “Executing” the transactions. As a firm that transmits or places orders with other entities for execution, TCG Securities LLP is obliged to provide appropriate information on its policy to its clients. We are still obliged therefore to have a ‘Best Execution Policy’.
3.0 What duties does TCG Securities LLP have in respect of Best Execution under MIFID?
In accordance with guidance under MIFID Directive Article 45, TCG Securities LLP has a duty to put in place a policy to identify, in respect of each class of instruments, the entities with which the orders are placed or to which the firm transmits orders for execution.
TCG Securities LLP has a duty to ensure that the entity or entities with which it transmits the client orders to, have sufficient systems in place to offer Best Execution and have an Execution Policy.
We have a duty to ensure that the entities we use will enable us to comply with the MIFID ‘best execution requirements’ when placing an order with, or transmitting an order to another entity for execution. In order to satisfy this requirement we have carried out reviews of all the entities we use to ensure we are able to comply with our best execution requirements. In carrying out a review of these entities, we have considered the following:
(i) Whether the entity itself is subject to the MIFID best execution requirements.
(ii) Whether the entity will undertake by contract to comply with any or all of the MIFID best execution requirements in relation to the relevant business ie. It has contractual responsibilities for best execution.
(iii) Whether the entity can demonstrate that it delivers a high level of execution quality for the kind of orders we are likely to transmit to it.
Although we are not obliged to provide you with the review itself, in the spirit of our Treating Customer Fairly policy and by virtue of the firm’s duty to act fairly and professionally, we would consider honouring such a request should it enable you to make a properly informed decision about the firm.
If the entities themselves are subject to Article 21 under MIFID, then we are allowed to place a high degree of reliance on the entity in order to comply with its own best execution requirements.
4.0 Selecting the Clearing and Executing Brokers (‘Entities’)
TCG Securities LLP considers a number of factors when deciding which entity to introduce your account to. Some of the factors considered when choosing the entities are listed below, but this list is not exhaustive and other factors not listed here may or may not influence the firm’s decision as to where your account is introduced.
1. Dealing Platforms
2. Range of Markets
3. Commercial Terms
4. Quality of Service
5. Spreads, Quotes, Quality of IT and Price Systems.
6. Back office, Administration.
7. Approach to Treating Customers Fairly
8. Quality of Execution and ability to maintain good quality best execution requirements.
We will have chosen one or more of the entities listed in Section 7.0 to execute orders as our preferred provider and as agreed in writing with you. By choosing an entity to execute our client orders with, we are satisfied that their execution policies will allow them to deliver best execution on your behalf. Once we have chosen an entity to execute your transactions with, we may not have any influence or control over which execution venues they choose, and by entering into a contract directly with that entity you will be deemed to have given consent to their own best execution policy.
5.0 How do we assess whether or not we are acting in the best interests of our clients and/or obtaining the best possible result for our clients?
TCG Securities LLP has a Treating Customers Fairly policy which, amongst other things, includes regular monitoring of client orders to ensure that the entities are providing good quality best execution and that we are performing our obligations under MIFID Directive Article 45.
As receivers and transmitters of orders we must comply with the obligation to act in accordance with the best interests of our clients when transmitting orders to other entities for execution. When we receive and place orders for execution with a third party we have a duty to take all reasonable steps to obtain the best possible result for the client, taking into account the execution factors. The relative importance of these factors must be determined by reference to certain execution criteria to determine the best possible result in terms of the considerations below. Where the chosen entity executes an order, the best possible result must be determined in terms of the total consideration, representing the price of the financial instrument and the costs related to execution, which must include all expenses incurred by the client which are directly related to the execution of the order, including execution venue fees, clearing and settlement fees and any other fees paid to third parties involved in the execution of the order
In order to assess whether or not we are obtaining the best possible result for our clients, we will also take into account the following criteria to determine the relative importance of the criteria (above):
- the characteristics of the client including the categorisation of the client as retail or professional;
- the characteristics of the client order;
- the characteristics of the financial instruments that are the subject of that order;
- the characteristics of the execution venues chosen by the entity to which that order can be directed.
If you give us a specific instruction about the way you would like your order executed, you should be aware that this may prevent us or the entity from implementing our policies to obtain the best possible result for our clients.
6.0 Monitoring and review of our Order Execution Policy
We will monitor the effectiveness of our order execution arrangements and Order Execution policy in accordance with our own Treating Customers Fairly procedures. We will assess from time to time whether the entities are able to provide best execution and execution arrangement of a suitable quality on a consistent basis or whether we need to make changes to our execution arrangements. We will also review our order execution arrangements and Order Execution Policy in respect of material changes either in respect of one of our chosen entities or otherwise that affects our ability to continue to achieve the best results for our clients. Should there be any material changes to our order execution arrangements or Order Execution Policy, we will notify you.
7.0 List of Clearing and Executing Brokers (‘Entities’)
IG Markets
IG Index
MF Global
Direct Sharedeal
GNI Ltd
CMC Markets
Saxo Bank
Each of these entities will have their own Best Execution policies containing lists of Execution Venues.
8.0 Your Consent
We are required to obtain your prior consent to this policy. By giving us an order to transmit for execution on your behalf, you will be deemed to have given your consent to this policy.
 While the Equity Breakout and the Oil, Mining & Gas systems will form the back bone of our basic service, it is our intention to deliver on top of this as personalised service as you require. If you would like to talk to us to discuss what kind of service it is that you are looking for, or simply to learn more about what we do then please do not hesitate to call or email us and speak to one of our brokers. +44 (0)20 7060 2242sales@tcgsecurities.co.uk |
Request Information
TCG Securities LLP| Gallery 4, Lloyd’s Building, 12 Leadenhall Street, London, EC3V 1LP | 020 7060 2242
Registered Office: Stable House, Oxhey, Hertfordshire, WD19 5RB. | Registered No. OC336408
Risk Warning: Trading Contracts for Differences (CFDs), Futures and spread betting carries a high level of risk to your capital, and is not suitable for all investors. Only speculate with money you can afford to lose. Trading or placing any bets can result in consumers incurring liabilities in excess of their initial stake. Please ensure you fully understand the risks, and seek independent advice if necessary. TCG Securities LLP is an Appointed Representative (FSA No. 482887) of Equitrade Markets Ltd (FSA No. 441877), a company authorised by the FSA to provide advice on spread betting, CFDs, futures. options and rolling spot foreign exchange.