Business | Markets
Former GFS compliance man gets a reprieve
The Dubai Financial Services Authority on Tuesday said it had accepted an enforceable undertaking given by Roberto Da Silva, the former compliance reporting officer of GFS Investments.
- Staff Report
- Published: 23:58 January 6, 2009
Dubai: The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) on Tuesday said it had accepted an enforceable undertaking given by Roberto Da Silva, the former compliance reporting officer of GFS Investments (Middle East).
"The written undertaking follows the authority's investigation into Da Silva's conduct between May 17, 2007, the date that GFS Investments was licensed by the authority, to October 31, 2007, the date of his resignation from GFS Investments," a statement said.
"The authority's action follows an earlier investigation into the business operations of GFS Investments, which resulted in enforceable undertakings with GFS Investments and a number of its directors and employees, in September 2008," the statement added.
In accordance with the enforceable undertaking entered into by GFS Investments, compensation has been paid to customers who were adversely affected by the conduct that was the subject of the investigation.
Da Silva acknowledged the authority's concerns about his conduct as an authorised individual of GFS Investments.
As the compliance officer of GFS Investments, Da Silva was required to observe high standards of integrity and fair dealing, act with skill, care and diligence and have in place adequate systems and controls to ensure the business of GFS Investments was organised so that it could be controlled and managed effectively and complied with legislation applicable in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).
"The authority was concerned that Da Silva failed to carry out his duties as a compliance officer adequately," the statement said.
"As a consequence of its investigation, the authority entered into an enforceable undertaking with Da Silva, who agreed to pay a penalty to the authority in the amount of $70,000 (Dh257,250)."
DFSA's chief executive Paul Koster said: "The DFSA has an important role to maintain business standards within the DIFC and relies upon compliance officers to maintain high standards of conduct in authorised firms.
"Compliance officers are the first line of regulatory defence against those who choose not to adhere to proper standards ... The vast majority of our compliance officers take their governance and compliance responsibilities very seriously."
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