At its meeting on 11.03.2021, the FSC adopted Decision No. 123 – ОЗ of 11.03.2021 on initiating proceedings for compulsory liquidation of IC EUROAMERICAN AD, UIC 124634117, and the Guarantee Fund was designated as liquidator of the insurer with revoked license. The decision is available on the FSC website in the section Administrative Documents, Decisions, 2021, March.

 By Decision No. 1309 – ОЗ of 17.12.2019 the FSC revoked the license for insurance of IC EUROAMERICAN AD, UIC 124634117, issued by Decision No. 238-03 of 27.02.2014 of the FSC, and appointed a conservator of the company. The same decision prohibits the free disposal of assets by IC EUROAMERICAN AD until the commencement of liquidation or insolvency proceedings, as well as the conclusion of new insurance contracts for all classes of insurance for a period of 6 months from the date of issuance of the decision. Decision No. 1309 – ОЗ of 17.12.2019 became effective on 17.02.2021, when Decision No. 2111 / 17.02.2021 under Administrative case No. 9509/2020 according to the inventory of the Supreme Administrative Court, Seventh Department maintained Decision No. 563/19.06.2020 under Administrative case No. 47/2020 according to the inventory of the Sofia District Administrative Court, which rejected the appeal of the insurer against Decision No. 1309 – ОЗ of 17.12.2019 of the FSC.

 Decision No. 1309 – ОЗ of 17.12.2019 of the FSC becoming effective is grounds to proceed to the compulsory termination of IC EUROAMERICAN AD under Art. 602, para. 1, item 2 of the IC, as the revocation of the insurer’s license is based on Art. 40, para. 2, item 2, 4 and 8 of the IC.

The Social Insurance Supervision Department of the Financial Supervision Commission announced the results of the change of participation and transfer of funds of insured persons from one to another respective pension fund for the fourth quarter and for 2020. The data were obtained on the basis of reports submitted by pension insurance companies to the Financial Supervision Commission.

 In the fourth quarter of 2020, a total of 71,894 applications for change of participation and transfer of funds from one pension fund to another were submitted to the pension insurance companies.

 A total of 61,809 insured persons from the applications submitted in the fourth quarter of 2020 have changed their participation in the supplementary pension insurance funds. The total amount of the funds transferred to another pension fund of the respective type is BGN 219,843,802.

 The insured persons who exercised their right to change their participation and transfer funds from the individual accounts in 2020 are a total of 232,148. The total amount of the transferred funds in 2020 from one to another respective fund is BGN 813,279,425.

 Results of the change in the participation and transfer of funds from one to another respective pension fund for the fourth quarter and for 2020 are available in section: Social Insurance activity/ Statistics / Statistics and analysis / 2020.

 The Social Insurance Supervision Department of the Financial Supervision Commission published data on the persons allocated to the supplementary mandatory pension insurance funds in 2020. The information is obtained from the protocols for the ex officio allocations of persons who did not choose a supplementary mandatory pension insurance fund .

 The persons for whom the obligation to be insured in a universal or occupational pension fund has arisen and who have not submitted an application for participation within the stipulated terms or have submitted applications for participation in more than one fund of the respective type are allocated ex-officio. In 2020, a total of 76,211 persons were allocated ex-officio to the supplementary mandatory pension insurance funds, of which 66,490 persons in the universal funds and 9,721 persons in the occupational funds. The persons allocated ex-officio in 2020 account for 94.19 per cent of the total number of persons admitted (from newly accepted applications and ex officio allocations) in the universal funds and 92.13 per cent in the occupational ones.

 Information on the persons allocated ex-officio in 2020 can be found in the sections “Social Insurance activity”, “Statistics”, “Statistics and analysis of the social insurance market”.

The Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) pursues a consistent policy to protect the interests of consumers of financial services and prevent the performance of investment activities and services by unlicensed entities.

 Mr. Boyko Atanasov, Chairman of the FSC, indicated to the public that a significant number of complaints have been received from Bulgarian citizens who claim to have lost money as a result of fraud by companies named Grand Spot Market EOOD, Post Grand Research EOOD (formerly Grand Research EOOD), Grand Eastern Market EOOD, Market Progress EOOD, Mini-Market 1920 EOOD, Super-Market 2020 EOOD, Global Strategy EAD, Post Fin Engineering Income EOOD (formerly Fin Engineering Inc EOOD) and Verginia FinCorp EOOD. The Commission warns consumers and the public that these companies do not have a license issued by the FSC for the provision of investment services and / or investment activities within the meaning of Art. 6 of the Markets in Financial Instruments Act (MFIA). Therefore these companies are not entitled to carry out such activities on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria, as well as to receive funds in their bank accounts in order to invest them in financial instruments. At present, the following websites have been established, which are connected with Grand Spot Market EOOD and Grand Eastern Market EOOD: https://grandspotmarket.com, https://grandeasternmarket.com.

 The provision of investment services and the performance of investment activities may be carried out only by a joint stock company or a limited liability company with registered office and address of management in the Republic of Bulgaria, which has a license to operate as an investment firm under the terms and conditions of the MFIA. In this context, on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria investment services can be provided only by:

–              investment intermediaries licensed by the FSC;

–              investment intermediaries – banks licensed by the BNB;

–              investment intermediaries licensed by the competent authorities of other Member States of the European Union and providing investment services on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria in accordance with the law (Chapter 4, Section II of the MFIA);

–              investment intermediaries from a third country, providing investment services on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria in accordance with the law (Chapter 4, Section III of the MFIA)

 The FSC draws the attention of potential investors to the fact that before transferring funds for trading in financial instruments, they should always check on the FSC website whether the person on whose account they intend to make the transfer has the right to provide investment services and / or perform investment activities. As an indication that the potential investor is the subject of fraud is the fact that the name of the company specified in the contract as an investment firm, which in some cases may be identical to a licensed one, differs from the name of the company on whose account the funds should be transferred. Aggressive commercial practices, such as persistent and unsolicited commercial communications to potential investors by telephone and e-mail, are often used.

 Licensed investment intermediaries can be verified on the FSC website – http://www.fsc.bg  and / or on the websites of the competent authorities of the European Union, as well as on the website of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) – https://www.esma.europa.eu/. The FSC website also has a list of investment intermediaries that have notified the Financial Supervision Commission of their intention to provide financial services in the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria. Trading through an intermediary that does not appear on these lists means that said intermediary operates illegally without meeting the necessary regulatory and supervisory requirements, which in turn leads to a lack of security for the funds invested.

 In view of international awareness, Mr. Boyko Atanasov stressed that information about companies and platforms for which negative information is available can be found on the websites of:

– ESMA- https://www.esma.europa.eu/investor-corner/warning-and-publications-investors/;

– International Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO) – – www.iosco.org/investor_protection/?subsection=investor_alerts_portal.

The data presented from the reports of insurers in non-life and life insurance at the end of October 2020 are summarized and published on the FSC website – www.fsc.bg, section “Insurance activity”, “Statistics”.

The Deputy Chairperson of the Financial Supervision Commission, Head of the Investment Supervision Department, took part in “Ring the Bell for Gender Equality”, an international initiative dedicated to the celebration of International Women’s Day – March 8. The women’s management team of the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE) and Ms. Mariya Filipova, a representative of the leadership team of the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC), started the stock exchange session today.

“Today we have the opportunity to recognize the important role of modern women in a professional aspect. Women contribute with their unique leadership style, with their care for the teams they lead in a crisis and with the achievements measurable in various areas of life. What is specific about the non-banking financial sector in Bulgaria is that it has the important task and responsibility to develop the capital market in the digital age, and the participation of women in implementation and management will undoubtedly contribute to more communication, innovation and partnership.” Mariya Filipova.

The grand opening of the stock exchange session was attended by Hristina Pendicheva – state expert in the Ministry of Finance and member of the Board of Directors of the BSE and Vasil Golemanski, Deputy Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the BSE.

“We are proud of the strong representation of women at all levels of the stock exchange. The fact that it operates seamlessly and successfully during a pandemic is also reflected in the values of respect for diversity and gender equality that are fundamental to us. In this regard, we believe that we are a good example to follow,” said Vasil Golemanski, Deputy Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the BSE.

The initiative is being held for the seventh time and this year covers more than 90 exchanges worldwide. Its current edition is entitled “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world” in honour of women leaders and women’s organizations who demonstrate their knowledge, skills and qualities to lead effectively in the recovery of the Covid-19 pandemic. It is held in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), the Sustainable Stock Exchange Initiative (SSE Initiative), of which the BSE is a member, the UN Global Compact, UN Women and Women in ETFs (WE) , in order to promote gender equality in the field of capital markets.

A general administrative act was issued – Decision No. 107-ОЗ of 02.03.2021 for determining the amount of minimum percentages, according to Art. 91, para. 3, item 2 of Ordinance No. 53 of 23.12.2016 on the requirements for reporting, valuation of assets and liabilities and the formation of technical reserves of insurers, reinsurers and the Guarantee Fund (Ordinance No. 53), as well as the period for their application.

The decision is available on the FSC website in the section Administrative Documents, Decisions, 2021, March.

The Financial Supervision Commission notifies all insurance intermediaries that with a decision of a meeting of the FSC held on 23.02.2021, the following have been adopted:

1. Guidelines regarding the interpretation and application of Art. 292, para. 2 and 3, Art. 304, para. 2 and 3, Art. 316, para. 1, Art. 317, para. 3 and Art. 321b, para. 2 of the Insurance Code in connection with the provision, documentation and reporting of continuing professional training and development of distributors of insurance products, which were accepted in connection with numerous inquiries received by the Insurance Supervision Department from distributors of insurance products regarding documentation and reporting of continuing professional training and development of distributors of insurance products in accordance with the Insurance Code and with a view to unifying the procedure and manner of provision, documentation and reporting of continuing training.

2. Guidelines regarding the interpretation and application of Art. 290, para. 2 and 3 of the Insurance Code in relation to the handling of complaints from users of insurance services by insurance intermediaries, in accordance with the Guidelines on complaints handling by insurance intermediaries (EIOPA-BoS-13/164 EN) issued by the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA). The Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) has adopted a decision of 14.07.2014 that it intends to comply with the above guidelines. At the time of the decision, the repealed Insurance Code does not contain provisions that would allow the FSC to take action to implement the guidelines. The current IC contains the provision of Art. 290, which regulates complaints handling by insurance intermediaries. This provision contains general regulations, and the provision of Art. 9, para. 4 of the IC allows the FSC to adopt guidelines in connection with the application of the requirements of the EIOPA guidelines.

3. Practice regarding the establishment of facts and circumstances during on-site inspections of insurance intermediaries, adopted in view of the need to disclose the checklists used by the FSC to establish circumstances during on-site inspections of intermediaries; these lists will be publicly available to the supervised entities – insurance brokers, insurance agents and intermediaries offering insurance products as an ancillary activity.

 The Social Insurance Supervision Department of the FSC announced the preliminary results of the supplementary pension insurance activity for 2020. The information was obtained on the basis of the reports and references submitted by the pension insurance companies to the Financial Supervision Commission. The data on distribution of insured persons by sex and age as of 31.12.2020 have also been published.

 The total number of insured persons in the four types of pension funds as of 31.12.2020 is 4,819,139 people, increasing compared to 31.12.2019 by 1.18 per cent.

 In the system of the supplementary pension insurance as of 31.12.2020, BGN 17,294,294 thousand of net assets have been accumulated. Compared to the end of 2019, the net assets of pension funds increased by 10.67 percent.

 The total revenues of the pension insurance companies for 2020 amount to BGN 217,020 thousand and increased by 8.88 per cent compared to the reported revenues for 2019. The net financial result of the companies as of 31.12.2020 amounts to BGN 58,432 thousand

 Detailed information on the preliminary results of the supplementary pension insurance activity for 2020 and on the insured persons and the accumulated funds as of 31.12.2020 by sex and age are available in the section: Social Insurance activity/ Statistics / Statistics and analysis / 2020.