2.1 Licensed Financial Institutions must provide information in a proactive and transparent manner to allow a Customer sufficient time to understand the information, including the terms and conditions.
2.2 All information on products and services aimed at and for Customers must have clear, transparent and consistent disclosures and comply with all applicable documentation requirements.
2.3 Licensed Financial Institutions must use plain language, information that is accessible and communicated in terms that are easily understandable. Licensed Financial Institutions must also use specific disclosure mechanisms, including warnings, to inform Customers of the key characteristics of and limitations on, accounts and other Financial Products or Services, including and not limited to risks, costs, fees, interest or profit rates, penalties, commitments to donate, tenure and locked terms relating to any Financial Product or Service.
2.4 Licensed Financial Institutions must provide effective disclosures at all stages of the relationship with the Customer. Customers must be made aware in advance of any permissible change in terms and conditions through all stages of the relationship.
2.5 In case of rejection of a Customer’s application for a Financial Product and/or Service by the Licensed Financial Institution, the Licensed Financial Institution must disclose the reason for rejection to the applicant except where the reason of rejection is related to Financial Crime risks or as may be prohibited by law.
2.6 Licensed Financial Institutions must not provide only partial or biased disclosure to entice a Customer by limiting the initial disclosure material that only presents the positive aspects of the product and/or service and only then disclosing the full characteristics of the product at the point of sale or post-sale, a point at which the Customer may feel obligated to complete the transaction(s) or do not have a recourse to exit the Product and/or Service post-sale.
2.7 Licensed Financial Institutions must regularly monitor and improve the effectiveness of their disclosures with techniques including and not limited to SME Complaint analysis and Customer satisfaction surveys.
2.8 Information must be available in both English and Arabic.
2.9 Licensed Financial Institutions should provide Customers with the signed documentations and contracts within a reasonable time.
2.10 Licensed Financial Institutions must ensure the accuracy of all disclosures made including the verification and correctness of statements made in such disclosures and any related calculation, assumption or reference.
2.11 Licensed Financial Institutions must promote, sell, distribute and manage Financial Products and/or Services in a responsible manner. Licensed Financial Institutions must take necessary steps to ensure that Customers are made aware of and understand the proposed terms and conditions prior to the final stage of the sales process or the time of signing of the agreement.
2.12 Licensed Financial Institutions must be transparent in their pricing and product structure.
2.13 A Licensed Financial Institution’s Board and Senior Management are responsible for providing direction and oversight to ensure that good disclosure practices for Financial Products and/or Services relating to SMEs are adopted throughout the institution.