THE FINANCIAL MARKETS ASSOCIATION OF CANADA

The Best Market Practices Guidelines listed below date back to April 1997 and have been revised. The correct version is now the Model Code.

FMAC requires its members to adhere to international principles of Professional Conduct. Strict adherence by members encourages the smooth operation of the market and assists the Association in its efforts to promote the Market as self-regulating. These principles are outlined in the ACI Model Code.

FMAC members seeking dispute resolution or guidance on an issue of professional conduct are urged to contact the Canadian Committee for Professionalism (CCFP).

The Canadian Committee for Professionalism (CCFP)

Formed in 1993, the CCFP is sponsored jointly by the Canadian Foreign Exchange Committee (CFEC) and the Financial Markets Association of Canada. The mission statement of the CCFP is: “To promote a high standard of professionalism and ethical conduct in the Canadian foreign exchange markets.” To this end, the Document of Organization outlines a number of key objectives:

1. To advocate the continuing improvement of market practices to enhance the self-regulatory nature of foreign exchange markets in Canada.
2. To provide educational vehicles which foster the understanding of foreign exchange markets and related financial markets, in practice and theory.
3. To arbitrate disputes, upon request, between two or more members of the community and the institution that they represent, in a confidential and expedient manner.
4. To communicate with foreign exchange market professionals, and related trade associations, on matters relating to market practices and ethical conduct.

The committee is comprised of five individuals who are invited to the CCFP at the request of the CFEC and FMAC. The Chair of the CCFP is generally the Past President of FMAC. The committee also includes the Chair of the CFEC, the President of FMAC, and two individuals selected jointly by the CFEC and FMAC, who have broad knowledge of the foreign exchange markets and sufficient stature in the market to engender respect.

Individuals with issues or concerns as they relate to the efficient functioning of the foreign exchange markets are encouraged to contact any member of the CCFP. This includes making use of the committee as an impartial, confidential arbitrator of market-related disputes.

To contact a current CCFP member please send a message to fmac@fmac.ca. The Executive Director of FMAC will forward your inquiry to the currently available CCFP member who will then contact you directly. Please reserve any confidential comments until you hear directly from the CCFP member.

The CCFP meets at the Chair’s request and the format of meetings is informal. Any recommendation or issue paper is presented for discussion at the CFEC before distribution and public disclosure. The committee uses FMAC as the vehicle to distribute information to the market.