Rules and Terms
General Terms of Business between Arion Bank hf. and its customers - Valid from 18 January 2025
General Terms on Deposit Accounts - Valid from 18 January 2025
Terms of use of the Arion Bank App - Valid from 2 September 2024
Online banking terms - Valid from 2 September 2024
Act on Securities Transaction
On 1 November 2007 a new act on securities transactions came into effect in Iceland, Act no. 108/2007. The new act incorporates two European Union directives into Icelandic legislation: the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, also known as MiFID; and the Transparency Directive. The new act heralds changes to various important regulations on trading with financial instruments (this term includes shares, bonds, units trust certificates and derivatives).
The objective of the change in legislation is to increase consumer protection for investors. It takes into account the experience and knowledge of parties engaged in trading on the financial markets. Consumer protection for investors varies in scope and decreases the greater investors' experience and knowledge of trading with financial instruments is considered to be.
Conflicts of interest
Managing conflicts of interest is all part of delivering the best possible service to clients. This is done through the segregation of employees who have conflicting roles within Arion Bank.
We will disclose to clients cases where there is a danger that this cannot be fully achieved. Additional information on conflicts of interests can be provided to clients upon request.
Best execution
Arion Bank has always strived to give our clients the best possible result for their orders. With MiFID achieving this goal has been put into a more rigid legal framework. We will provide retail and professional clients with our order execution policy, which will offer clients some insight into how we select venues to execute their orders. “Best possible result” means that Arion Bank will take into account certain factors such as price, cost and speed of execution when processing orders.
Information on the order execution policy
Client categorization
One of the main changes due to MiFID is the requirement to know our clients and subsequently categorize them according to a standard set of criteria. Most clients will receive the default rating of retail client, which gives them the most protection. Larger institutions and companies and companies that have received licences from the Financial Supervisory Authority are classified as professionals giving them less protection, as they are able to make their own investment decisions and assess investment risks on their own. Clients have the option to request a different categorization, higher or lower providing they fulfil certain MiFID requirements. Clients who request a higher categorization should be aware that the change in categorization will lead to a lower client protection. Finally there is the eligible counterparty.
Measures against Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing
It is Arion Bank's policy to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism and to prevent the misuse of the Bank's services and operations for such purposes. The Bank implements and upholds both domestic and internationally recognized standards in this regard, including those issued by the FATF and the EU. The objective of the rules is to prevent the abuse of the Bank’s services for the purpose of money laundering or terrorist financing.
AML Information for Financial Institutions
Policy on Combating Financial Crime
Code of ethics
- Keys to responsible behaviour and decision-making
We at Arion Bank promote high ethical standards and are conscious of the fact that our operations affect different stakeholders and society at large. The code of ethics is designed to serve as a key to responsible behaviour and decision-making at Arion Bank.
The code of ethics applies to the Board of Directors, the Bank's management, and other employees of the Bank. It is the responsibility of the CEO to make sure that the code is adhered to. The code is reviewed annually and confirmed by the Board of Directors.
- We treat people with respect
We respect different points of view and we believe that critical debate lays the foundations for good decisions. We treat people with respect and do not discriminate against anyone on the basis of their gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, origin, nationality, skin colour, age, disability or religion or other factor.
- We protect different interests and are guided by sustainability
We protect the interests of all the Bank's stakeholders in the long term, i.e. customers, investors, the community and employees. We endeavour to inform our stakeholders of any potential conflicts of interest. We are guided by sustainability and thus meet the needs of our stakeholders without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
- We obey the rules
Our decisions and actions are in compliance with law and regulations. Any uncertainty in this context should be eliminated as far as is possible. We follow our own rules of procedure and improve them if necessary.
- We take responsibility for our actions and environment
We know our role and take responsibility for our projects and decisions and consider their effect on our stakeholders and environment. We define our role, area of responsibilities and impact broadly and ensure that no projects are overlooked.
- We can provide rationale for all our decisions
We take a critical approach and our decisions are based on the merits of each individual case and we can provide stakeholders, i.e. customers, creditors, owners, the community and employees, with rationale for our decisions.
Arion Bank is a signatory to the Global Compact, the United Nations’ corporate sustainability initiative, and was one of the first organizations to sign the United Nations Principles for Responsible Banking (UN PRB). The Bank is thus committed to working towards and promoting sustainable development throughout its value chain.