Category 2 Products.
Financial Advisers Act 2008
This Disclosure Statement relates to financial adviser services provided by Equity Credit Union Plc (ECU) and its Qualifying Financial Entity (QFE) advisers to retail clients in relation to the financial products set out in this document. It was prepared on 02 November 2017.
Name of QFE: Equity Credit Union Plc
Trading names: Equity Credit Union Plc; BankDirect
Main place of business: Equity, 200 Bay St. #3400, Toronto, ON M5J 2J1, Canada
Phone: +1 437 833 4921
Email: helpdesk@equitycuplc.com
It’s important to read this document.
This information is important. It should help you make an informed decision on which financial adviser to choose. We may also give you other information that can help with the financial decisions you make.
What sort of adviser are we?
Equity is a Qualifying Financial Entity (QFE) and is a member of the QFE group called Equity Credit Union QFE Group. Employees of Equity and other members of the Equity Credit Union QFE Group (our advisers) may provide you with financial adviser services relating to our products and services.
As a QFE, Equity takes responsibility for the financial adviser services you get from our advisers. We’ll ensure our advisers exercise care, diligence and skill in providing financial adviser services to you.
Equity also has other obligations under the Financial Advisers Act 2008 (including regulations made under that Act) and under the general law.
What are our products and services?
This Disclosure Statement relates to financial adviser services that Equity offers to retail customers in relation to the following classes of financial products:
- term deposits issued by Equity
- transaction and savings accounts issued by Equity
- cash and term portfolio investment entity funds (also known as PIEs) issued by Equity Group Investments Limited (a member of the Equity Credit Union QFE Group) and promoted by Equity
- loans, including home loans, personal loans, personal overdrafts
- and personal credit cards provided by Equity
Equity may also from time to time provide financial adviser services in relation to financial products provided by third parties, including contracts of insurance (health, life, risk, travel, motor, home and contents) and pre-paid foreign currency products. If your Equity adviser can’t help with the advice you need, they’ll refer you to another adviser who can.
What should you do if something goes wrong?
If you have a problem, concern, or complaint about our products or financial adviser services, please let us know so we can try to fix the issue. You can do this in several ways:
- contact a Customer Services Representative at your nearest branch, or ask to speak to the Branch Manager
- call our Contact Centre on +1 437 833 4921
- use our feedback form available from any Equity branch or at equitycuplc.com
- contact a Customer Care Manager on +1 437 833 4921
If we can’t find a way to fix the issue, you can also contact the Banking Ombudsman, who may be able to help.
You can also report information about Equity or any of our advisers to the Financial Markets Authority.
How is Equity regulated?
Equity is licensed and regulated by the Financial Markets Authority to provide financial adviser services, a discretionary investment management service and to issue derivatives to retail investors. If you’re interested, you can check the status of Equity as a QFE and which other entities are a member of the Equity Credit Union QFE Group on the register of financial service providers. Equity is also a registered bank, registered with and supervised by the Bank of Canada.
