The Capital Markets Board of Turkey is the first and foremost regulatory authority in charge of the country’s derivatives and securities markets. As such, the authority is also responsible for the regulation of online Forex/CFD trading.
Not many operators use the CMB as their licensing/regulatory authority, because through it, one only gains access to the Turkish market. Its relatively strict regulatory requirements and its fiscally not-too-attractive jurisdiction do not make it a popular choice either.
The top missions of the authority are to:
– maintain the integrity of capital markets within the country
– protect customers against fraud and unfair exploitation
– provide safeguards for investments in the capital markets
– fully integrate the international financial norms into its regulatory framework
– promote a modern market environment, while enhancing the infrastructure of the capital markets
– continuously evolve and adapt to the requirements of the capital markets
The official website of the authority (http://www.cmb.gov.tr/) offers details on every aspect of the operation, including its organizational structure.
The authority was effectively founded through the 1981 Capital Markets Law, which defined a series of regulations concerning capital markets instruments, institutions and market organization within Turkey.
To understand the scope of the CMB and the way in which it fulfills its mission/objectives, one has to understand that there are three main pieces of legislation which act as the supporting pillars of the legal framework governing the Turkish capital markets.
The first of these pillars is the above mentioned 1981 CML, while the other two are the Turkish Commercial Code and Decree #91, concerning the functioning of securities exchanges.
These three legal pillars frame and define the very existence of the CMB.
Another law which presents interest from the perspective of the CMB in particular and the Turkish capital markets in general, is Decree #32, enacted in 1989, which has liberalized the financial system, granting foreign investors access to Turkish securities, while at the same time allowing Turkish investors to pour capital into foreign securities.
The regulatory activity performed by the CMB consists of the supervision of the securities markets within the scope of the CML. In a word: making sure that the provisions of the CML are observed by all parties, is the primary task of the regulator. The protection of customer rights is also covered by this same regulatory umbrella.
Some institutions subject to the CMB’s regulatory efforts are:
– mutual funds, investment companies and securities markets intermediaries
– secondary markets and stock exchanges
– independent financial auditing firms
– commodity- and various derivatives exchanges
– clearing institutions and rating agencies
– futures and options
Among its regulatory tasks concerning the secondary markets and intermediation, the CMB registers the companies offering capital market instruments to the public, as well as the instruments offered by these operators. It also keeps a watchful eye on the way these services and instruments are marketed and advertised.
The bottom line
The CMB may not be a preferred regulator for operators looking for quick and cheap ways to obtain a Forex/CFD license, but its activity rests on solid foundations indeed, as shown above.
Below is a list of brokers that are CMB regulated
| Broker | Features | Regulator | Platforms | Next Step | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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