BCS Cyprus Review Summary Company Name BrokerCreditService (Cyprus) Limited Founded 2004 Registered Country/Region Cyprus Regulation CYSEC (Regulated) Customer Support Phone: +357 25 822 734; Email: info@bcscyprus.com What is BCS Cyprus？ BrokerCreditService (Cyprus) Limited, known as BCS Cyprus, is an investment firm that was incorporated in Cyprus in December 2004. They operate under the full regulation of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) and bear the Market Making (MM) License (No.048/04), an assurance for potential clients regarding its adherence to financial rules and regulations. As of May 1, 2020, BCS Cyprus is a member of the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME), extending their network and influence in the financial markets sphere. BCS Cyprus is renowned for providing Direct Market Access (DMA) equity and derivatives brokerage services on several major global exchanges. These include RTS (Russia), MICEX (Russia), and the London Stock Exchange (LSE), along with other major exchanges such as AMEX, NASDAQ, NYSE, CME/CBOT, Eurex, Euronext, LIFFE, and XETRA. Pros & Cons Pros Cons Regulated by CYSEC No Info on Trading Software Many Kinds of Investment Services Provided Not-clear-enough Official Website Pros: Regulated by CYSEC: BCS Cyprus operates under the regulation of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission. Many Kinds of Investment Services Provided: BCS Cyprus offers an array of services such as Direct Market Access to significant global exchanges. This can cater to varied investment requirements. Cons: No Info on Trading Software: BCS Cyprus does not explicitly mention the provision of any particular trading platform. Not-clear-enough Official Website: The official website of BCS Cyprus is somewhat confusing. It may be difficult for users to do their own research on this firm. Is BCS Cyprus Safe or Scam？ BrokerCreditService (Cyprus) Limited, also known as BCS Cyprus, is fully regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CYSEC). The company holds a Market Making (MM) license with designation No.048/04, as certified by CYSEC. The company was granted its regulatory license on October 8, 2004, ensuring its commitment to operating within the regulations and standards outlined by the CYSEC ever since. As a regulated entity, BCS Cyprus is expected to maintain high levels of financial transparency, in line with guidelines provided by the commission. Market Instruments Market instruments refer to a wide range of assets and contracts that have value and can be traded in the financial markets. These include: Transferable securities: These are tradable financial instruments such as stocks, bonds, and other securities. Money-market instruments: Short-term, highly liquid debt securities like Treasury bills and commercial paper. Units in collective investment undertakings: This refers to investments in collective investment vehicles like mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Derivative contracts: These include options, futures, swaps, forward rate agreements, and other financial contracts related to securities, currencies, interest rates, commodities, and various financial indices. Derivative instruments for the transfer of credit risk: These instruments are used for managing credit risk, such as credit default swaps (CDS). Financial contracts for differences: Contracts that derive their value from an underlying asset without owning the asset itself. Derivative contracts relating to climatic variables, freight rates, emission allowances, or inflation rates: These are specialized derivatives that are tied to non-traditional assets like weather conditions, emissions allowances, or inflation rates. Other derivative contracts: This catch-all category includes derivative contracts related to various assets, rights, obligations, indices, and measures not mentioned in previous sections, as long as they share characteristics with other derivative financial instruments. Investment Services BCS Cyprus offers a broad range of investment services to cater to the diverse needs of its clients. These include: Reception and Transmission of Orders: BCS Cyprus facilitates the process of receiving and transmitting the orders of clients with respect to one or more financial instruments. This ensures that clients' trades are executed as requested. Execution of Orders on Behalf of Clients: Alongside receiving and transmitting orders, BCS Cyprus also carries out the execution of orders on behalf of its clients. This service simplifies the trading process for clients, saving them the effort of having to execute trades themselves. Dealing on Own Account: BCS Cyprus also engages in dealing on its own account. This means that the firm has the capacity to buy and sell financial instruments for its own trading account, not just for its clients. Portfolio Management: The firm provides portfolio management services, essentially guiding the investment decisions for clients portfolios based on their financial goals, risk tolerance levels and investment timeline. Underwriting of Financial Instruments and/or Placing of Financial Instruments on a Firm Commitment Basis: BCS Cyprus can act as an underwriter for financial instruments, and can place financial instruments on a firm commitment basis. This entails risking their own capital to buy these instruments with the goal of selling them to others. Placing of Financial Instruments without a Firm Commitment Basis: BCS Cyprus also places financial instruments without a firm commitment basis. This indicates that they have the ability to sell securities without guaranteeing the full amount to be raised from the sale. Ancillary Services Ancillary services are complementary to investment services and provide support and additional financial services to clients. These include: Safekeeping or administration of financial instruments for the account of clients: Custody services involve securely holding clients' financial assets and may include collateral management. Granting credits or loans to an investor to allow him to carry out transactions in financial instruments: This service facilitates leveraged trading, where investors can borrow funds to invest. Advice to undertakings on capital structure, industrial strategy, and related matters: This service provides advisory support to businesses on their financial structure and strategic decisions, including mergers and acquisitions. Foreign exchange services where these are connected to the provision of investment services: This includes foreign exchange transactions that are related to investment activities. Investment research and financial analysis: This involves providing research and recommendations regarding financial instruments and market analysis. Services related to underwriting: These services are connected to the underwriting of financial instruments. ⚠️Attention The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) fined BCS Cyprus $10,220 in April 2022 for non-compliance with Article 16(2) of Regulation (EU) 596/2014 on market abuse. Specifically, BCS Cyprus failed to establish and maintain effective arrangements and systems for detecting suspicious transactions. This means that BCS Cyprus did not have adequate systems in place to monitor for trades that could be indicative of insider dealing. Insider dealing is a type of market abuse where someone uses confidential information to trade in financial instruments in order to make a profit or avoid a loss. CySEC found that BCS Cyprus was not taking due account of the circumstances of changes in the price of financial instruments (size of change, period of time, issuance of announcements by the issuer) in which it was trading, and which may give rise to reasonable suspicions that a transaction on the financial instrument could constitute insider dealing. This is a serious issue because it undermines the integrity of the financial markets. If BCS Cyprus had been able to detect suspicious transactions, it could have reported them to CySEC, which could have led to an investigation and enforcement action against the insider dealers involved. BCS Cyprus has since taken steps to address the issue and improve its systems for detecting suspicious transactions. (To see more details, you can click on this link: https://www.financemagnates.com/forex/brokers/cysec-takes-action-against-ayers-alliance-bcs-cyprus-for-non-compliance/) Customer Support BCS Cyprus provides robust customer support for its clients through several communication channels. Clients can approach them through phone support at +357 25 822 734 or via email at info@bcscyprus.com for any inquiries or assistance they may need. BCS's physical location is also available for in-person consultations or meetings at Spyrou Kyprianou &1 Oktovriou, 1 Vashiotis Kalande offices, 1st floor, Mesa Geitonia 4004, Limassol, Cyprus. Conclusion BCS Cyprus is a regulated investment firm that offers a wide range of investment services and financial instruments. However, it is important to note that BCS Cyprus was fined by CySEC in 2022 for non-compliance with market abuse regulations. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Q: Is BCS Cyprus regulated？ A: Yes, BCS Cyprus is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC). Q: Is BCS Cyprus a good choice for beginners？ A: No, because on the official website, the information about the company and the trading conditions is not well-presented, combined with the absence of a useful guide, users can find it confusing and difficult to figure out. Q: How can users reach customer support of BCS Cyprus？ A: Customers can contact the support team of BCS Cyprus via Phone: +357 25 822 734; Email:info@bcscyprus.com. Risk Warning Online trading involves significant risk, and you may lose all of your invested capital. It is not suitable for all traders or investors. Please ensure that you understand the risks involved and note that the information provided in this review may be subject to change due to the constant updating of the company's services and policies. In addition, the date on which this review was generated may also be an important factor to consider, as information may have changed since then. Therefore, readers are advised to always verify updated information directly with the company before making any decision or taking any action. Responsibility for the use of the information provided in this review rests solely with the reader.