24 April 2015

The ombudsman of AMF published its 2014 annual report

During the last four years, the Mediation Service of the AMF has seen a substantial increase in the number of files. For the first time, applications received have exceeded the threshold of 1000.

Marielle Cohen-Branche, Ombudsman of the AMF, presented its annual report for the year 2014 during a press conference. This free public service, intended to promote the amicable resolution of financial disputes falling within the regulator’s competence, has experienced a new year of strong activity.

During the last four years, the Mediation Service of the AMF has seen a substantial increase in the number of files. For the first time, applications received have exceeded the threshold of 1000. The ombudsman has issued 276 opinions. In 44% of these files, its opinion was favourable to the applicant and was followed by both parties in 94% of cases. In 56%, its opinion was unfavourable to the saver, but this opinion was not accepted in only 6% of cases. This proportion, stable in relation to 2013, expresses the strong commitment to the mediation process. The refusal to enter into mediation by professionals is also very weak since the 44 cases of refusal of mediation concern a class action pertaining to a single banking group.

Actively working particularly towards better informing savers, Marielle Cohen-Branche, saw her general recommendations adopted by COPIESAS (Conseil d’orientation de la participation, de l’intéressement, de l’épargne salariale et de l’actionnariat salarié) in November 2014, an entity installed at Matignon, tasked with formulating legislative reform proposals concerning employee savings.

This year, mediations linked to proposals of speculative trading on the Internet (on Forex or on binary options) made to individuals have shown strong growth. They represent 141 files, showing a 60% increase in relation to 2013. The ombudsman may be confronted with unapproved websites, in which case the files can only be forwarded to the public prosecutor. In contrast, when the company has approval from a Member State of the European Union, mediation may be attempted. It involves difficult processes, but the results obtained, on a case by case basis, are much more satisfactory: of 28 opinions issued in 2014, 24 led to a favourable recommendation followed by both parties. Nonetheless, the situation remains seriously worrying and both the Mediation and the AMF are committed to combatting the dangers of these practices for individuals

Committed, with the support of her team, to promoting the method and benefits of mediation, Marielle Cohen-Branche pursued her actions in 2014, notably by creating her Journal de Bord, which has been genuinely successful. Each month, this column, accessible on the AMF's website, decodes a real mediation case and states the lesson to be learnt from it. The initiative is on-going and will be extended in 2015. The year should also see the transposition of the new mediation directive in France. This is expected to make big changes to how mediation is organised in France, in particular beyond the financial sphere.

Full press release

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