Pelican Consulting sarl logo contact us events exchange rates
Pelican
Our services and us
Financial advice
our services
New French residents
our background
Our regulation
our regulation
French regulation
European regulation
Terms of business
information
Hot topics
Articles
Links

Head office:

lʼOrée de lʼIsle A
av. des Quatre Otages
84800 Isle sur Sorgue
FRANCE
call us on +33 (0)4 90 38 66 01

South East office:

45 allée des Ormes D
(BP 1200)
06254 Mougins Cedex
FRANCE
call us on +33 (0)4 90 38 66 01

Independent Investment, Financial Planning and International Tax-strategic Consultants
French regulation
Financial Regulation in France stems from:
  • the ‘Autorité des Marchés Financiers’ (AMF) — for financial advisers and intermediaries
  • the ‘Autorité de Controle des Assurances et des Mutuelles (ACAM) - for the providers of assurance contracts
  • the ‘Comité des Entreprises d’Assurance’ — provides further information on assurance companies, and those foreign organistions allowed to have a legitimate representation in France, or market their services in France.

We, as financial and investment consultants, advisers and intermediaries, are regulated by the AMF, but the AMF then delegate their regulatory role according to our two main activities needing regulation:

• For the act of brokerage of assurance and insurance products
  (in French, both are ‘assurance’):

This is done through the ‘Codes des Assurances’, requiring all brokers (otherwise referred to as financial intermediaries) to be registered with the assurance regulator: ‘l’Organisme pour le Registre des Intermédiaires en Assurance’ — ORIAS.

Whilst the ‘Code des Assurances’ deals with everything to do with assurance and insurance (the French only using the term ‘assurance’), it is Section V of the code which deals with intermediaries, stating in article L.511.I that intermediation is the act of ‘… presenting, proposing, or aiding to conclude a life assurance (/insurance) contract.‘ Anyone therefore engaged in any of these activities has, by law, to be registered with ORIAS.

• For financial advice, other non-assurance financial products, and financial management:

This is effected through the ‘Code Monétaire et Financier’. This code delegates the regulatory activities to one of six authorised regulatory associations, which, apart from each having a slightly differing ideology, all perform exactly the same regulatory function:

  • Association Nationale des Conseils Financiers (ANACOFI-CIF)
  • Association des Analystes Conseillers en Investissements Financiers (AACIF)
  • Compagnie des Conseils en Investissements Financiers (CCIF)
  • Chambre des Indépendants du Patrimoine (CIP)
  • Conseils en Gestion de Patrimoine Certifiés (CGPC)
  • Chambre Nationale des Conseillers en Investissements Financiers (CNCIF)allows

The ‘Code Monétaire et Financier’ specifically confirms:

  • article L.321.1 — covers the code’s application, to, inter alia, the reception and transmission of requests on behalf of third parties ; the execution of orders on behalf of third partie ; negotiation ; the financial management of third party investment portfolios ; the provision of investment advice ; investment into guaranteed instruments ; investment into non guaranteed instruments.
  • article L.541-2 — the need for the investment adviser to be resident in France.

Accordingly, it is clear that is not possible for anyone to act as a financial adviser in France without being:

  • resident in France,
  • regulated by the ‘Code Monétaire et Financier’.

The public can check the regulatory status of practitioners by connecting to the relevant regulator’s web site as follows:

  • ORIAS — then insert the details as relevant in the column on the left of the page
  • ANACOFI — then click on ‘nos adherents CIF’ on the left, then insert details

Alternatively, the AMF web site also reproduces the complete list of all advisers, their regulatory association and their regulated activities.

  • AMF — then click on ‘CIF et démarchage’ on the left, then ‘fichiers de CIF/Associations agréées’, then insert the details of the adviser or their firm in the relevant box
Pélican Consulting sarl - Siège l’Orée de l’Isle avenues des Quatre Otages, 84800 Isle sur Sorgue - RCS Avignon 4150 414 586 Capital 8000€ - APE 7022Z - TVA FR14450414586
ORIAS (www.orias.fr) Cat. B 07 034 696 Garantie financière et assurance de responsabilité civile et professionnelle conformes aux articles L.512-6 et L.512-7 du Code des Assurances
ANACOFI-CIF (www.anacofi.asso.fr) E001306 Assurance de responsabilité civile et professionnelle conforme à l’article L541-3 du Code Monétaire et Financier 
UK FSA passport N° 479122 and to Belgium Ireland and Luxembourg