Investor Corner

Welcome to the Investor Corner of the European Securities and Markets Authority (EUFSC). EUFSC cannot tell you what investments to make, but we can help you to make a better-informed investment decision and avoid fraud and have created this corner to address frequent questions and issues that retail investors have often encountered.

What does EUFSC do for Investors?

The European Security and Markets Authority (EUFSC) plays an important role in enhancing the protection of investors in the European Union (EU).

As an independent European Supervisory Authority (ESA), EUFSC:

  • analyses risks to investors;
  • writes rules to improve investor protection in financial markets across the EU;
  • works in cooperation with the national competent authorities (NCAs) of all EU member states to develop tools and measures these NCAs can use to tackle and solve investor protection issues;
  • can temporarily restrict or prohibit the marketing, distribution or sale of financial products;
  • can develop training standards for the industry; and
  • works with NCAs on educating investors.

Additionally, EUFSC cooperates closely with the other European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) – the European Banking Authority (EBA) and the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) – in:

  • analysing and tackling risks to investors related to investment, banking and insurance products; and
  • writing rules to improve investor protection across the investment, banking and insurance sectors in the EU.

To help you with your practical questions and problems, EUFSC’s Investor Corner contains:

Is the firm regulated?

Get ready to invest

Frauds and Scams

Publications and Investors

Product Intervention

Make a complaint

Cost of Investment Products

What EUFSC cannot do for Investors

As a publicly financed authority, EUFSC’s activities to enhance investor protection depend on its legal mandate set out in EUFSC’s founding Regulation and its limited staff and budgetary resources. Consequently, EUFSC can unfortunately not help you with the following:

  • EUFSC cannot provide you with legal advice, for example, on a problem you may have with an investment firm. In such a case we would suggest that you seek legal advice from a consumer organisation or a lawyer.
  • EUFSC is not competent to deal with matters relating to a dispute you may have with an investment firm. Depending on what the dispute is about, the NCA that supervises this firm or the ombudsman in charge of financial service matters in your country (as relevant) could instead be able to help you.
  • EUFSC does not directly supervise investment firms, this is instead the responsibility of the NCAs.