By using the Services, you are confirming your consent to be bound by the terms of this Agreement. If you do not agree, Sharenet is not willing to provide you with access to the Services and you should immediately discontinue your use of the Services. You agree that Sharenet may modify this Agreement at any time in its sole discretion and without prior notice to you. Such changes will be posted online and will be effective upon posting.

You should review this Agreement periodically to ensure familiarity with its then-current terms and conditions.

Your continued use of the Services shall constitute your acceptance of this Agreement and your continued use of the Services following any modification of this Agreement shall constitute your acceptance to the Agreement, as amended. If you do not agree to the changes, you must notify Sharenet in writing or by telephone of your refusal and discontinue your use of the Services.

1. Definitions

In this agreement the following phrases have the following meanings:

1.1 “the/this agreement” means these terms and conditions; 

1.2 “Sharenet” means the company Sharenet (Proprietary) Limited, registration number: 1999/005033/07 

1.3 “JSE” means the JSE Limited, registration number: 2005/022939/06 

1.4 “Member Associates” means any party, including but not limited to stock-brokers, with whom Sharenet has an agreement in terms of which: 

1.4. 1 trades may be executed via such Member Associates and may include but is not limited to execution on a securities exchange, again including but not limited to the JSE, and/or 

1.4.2 other services offered by such stock broker may be accessed via the Website; 

1.5 “Subsidiary” means the term defined as such in section 1 (3) of the Companies Act No. 61 of 1973 of the Republic of South Africa; 

1.6 “User” means that person who either: 

1.6.1 contracts with Sharenet in terms of these terms and conditions with respect to the purchase of and/or  subscription for and/or access to and/or use of a Web Based Product, and/or 

1.6.2 any person using the Website who has accepted these terms and conditions;

1.7 “Username” means any username and/or password which Sharenet supplies to a User to enable the User to make use of the Web Based Product which that User in question has bought; subscribed for; uses and/or enrolled for;

1.8 “Web Based Product” means any product or service offered to the general public by Sharenet and/or by Sharenet for and on behalf of, or in conjunction with, any other entity, for use and/or subscription and/or sale and/or enrolment, via the Website. In this respect it is recorded that some of the Web Based Products are utilized via the Website while other of the Web Based Products are utilized separately from the Website; 

1.9 “Website” means the website www.sharenet.co.za, or any other domain registered, owned and used by Sharenet which contains these terms and conditions as terms and conditions which must be accepted for the purpose of  making use of such site and/or for the purpose of otherwise contracting with Sharenet.

2. Use at own risk and disclaimers

2.2 Sharenet does not make any representation that: 

2.2.1 Information and/or materials on the Website are appropriate for use in any particular and/or all jurisdictions available on the world wide web, or 

2.2.2 that transactions, securities, products, instruments or services offered on the Website are available and/or appropriate for sale or use in any particular and/or all jurisdictions, and/or by any particular and/or all investors and/or other potential clients. 

2.3  Those who access the Website do so at their own initiative, and are therefore responsible for compliance with applicable local laws and regulations, and Sharenet shall have no liability for such compliance and the User indemnifies Sharenet accordingly.

2.4 While every effort is made to update the information provided on this Website on a regular basis, Sharenet does not make any representations or warranties, either express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of information contained in the Website and shall not be bound in any manner by the information contained in the Website. 

2.5 Before making any decision to use, subscribe for, purchase or enroll with a Web Based Product, it is recommended to the User that the User contact Sharenet to confirm all information contained on these pages prior to placing reliance thereon. 

2.6 No research, opinions, information or content contained in the Website shall be construed as advice and is offered for  information purposes only. The information contained in any communication, including web pages, emails and attachments, is not to be construed as advice in terms of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act 37 of 2002. 

2.7 Users must not make any investment related or other commercial decisions based on the research, opinions, information      or content of the Website without first obtaining professional advice with respect thereto. 

2.8 It is recorded that certain of the Web Based Products pertain to securities trading services executed via the Website through a Member Associate. In this respect Sharenet will use reasonable endeavours to transfer all share trade instructions received through the Website to its Member Associates, in a prompt and timely manner. However, neither Sharenet nor its Member Associate shall be responsible, and disclaims all liability for, any claims arising from the late or delayed attendance by Sharenet or its Member Associate to the user’s instructions, it being agreed that such instructions are issued through the Website solely at the User’s own risk.

2.9 External links in the Website may be provided for the User’s convenience, but they are beyond the control of Sharenet and no representation or warranty is made as to their content. Use or reliance on any external links provided is at the User’s own risk. 

3. Applications for trading services

4. Credit risk enquiries

4.2 Sharenet furthermore reserves the right to: 

4.2.1 check the correctness of information supplied by the user when applying for a Web Based Product; 

4.2.2 furnish to any credit bureau the details of the User’s failure to: 

4.2.2.1 comply with any of these terms and conditions and/or 

4.2.2.2 comply with any terms and conditions contained in the Website itself, and/or 

4.2.2.3 comply with terms and conditions of a Member Associate with respect to the Web Based Product in question which the User has bought, subscribed for and/or enrolled with, as the case may be, though subject to the terms of prevailing law which regulates the furnishing of information to a credit bureau,. Furthermore, and subject to the said prevailing law, this disclosure may include a disclosure of information which the User disclosed to Sharenet with respect to its use of, purchase, of, subscription for and/or enrolment with a Web Based Product. 

5. Copyright, Trademarks and Logos

5.2 The trademarks, logos and service marks displayed on the Website are the registered and/or unregistered trademarks of Sharenet or its Member Associates. Nothing contained on this website should be construed as granting any license or right to use any such trademarks, logos and service marks to User without the written permission of the owner of same. 

5.3 Sharenet shall retain the copyright and intellectual property for any enhancements or software development it does on behalf of clients. 

6.Discontinuation of website features

6.1 Sharenet reserves the right at any time to change or discontinue without notice, any aspect or feature of the Website. 

7.Usernames

7.1 A Username is valid for only one User and for use at one terminal at any one time and no part of the information may be distributed or disseminated to third parties in any way. Should any unauthorized distribution or dissemination take place, whether or not the User is aware of it, the User shall be liable to Sharenet for any loss whatsoever which Sharenet may suffer as a result thereof, including but not limited to lost revenue; claims for breach of contract against Sharenet and any fines or penalties imposed against Sharenet by any governmental authorities or by any contracting counter parties. 

7.2 The User may not authorize or permit third persons to make use of their Username. In this respect, the User indemnifies Sharenet from any liability that may arise as a result of the User’s failure to comply with this condition. 

7.3 Each user declares that when they subscribe for a product and each time they use the product they do so as a non-professional user and they must report their status to Sharenet as a professional user at the time if that is the case, or at any future time if their status changes. Users shall be liable for any and all fees incurred related to any misstatement of their status. 

7.3.1 A user must meet and continue to meet all the criteria for a private user set out below to be construed as a non-professional user. A non-professional user is a user who: 

7.3.1.1 is one of the following: 

7.3.1.1 a natural person; 

7.3.1.2 a company or close corporation incorporated and registered in accordance with the laws of the Republic of South Africa of which the shareholders or members are the natural person referred to in 7.3.1.1 above and/or such natural person’s immediate family (ie the parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren and spouse of the natural person referred to in 7.3.1.1 above) and whose management and daily operations are under the control of such natural person and/or the natural person’s immediate family; or 

7.3.1.3 a trust registered with the Master of the High Court of any division of the High Court of South Africa the beneficiaries of which are the natural person referred to in 7.3.1.1 above and/or his immediate family; or 

7.3.1.4 an unincorporated entity operating an investment club for natural and not juristic persons on a non-professional basis, 

(each a “Qualifying Private User”); 

7.3.2 is not registered or required to be registered as, or qualified as, and does not act in any capacity (directly or indirectly) as, a securities trader, investment adviser or asset manager with any domestic or foreign financial exchange, regulatory authority, professional association or professional body recognised under any law; 

7.3.3 does not use the Service, directly or indirectly, for any business or professional purposes whatsoever (i.e. uses the Service solely for purposes of managing the personal funds of the natural person referred to in 7.3.1.1 above and/or those of his or her immediate family and in circumstances in which the Qualifying Private User does not charge or receive a fee); and 

7.3.4 does not distribute, publish or otherwise provide or make available any data from the Service to any third party in any manner whatsoever. 

8. Delivery of data messages

8.1 Sections 21 to 25 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, No 25 of 2002 of the Republic of South Africa shall apply, save that the Section 26 shall not apply and it is agreed by both parties that acknowledgement of receipt of a data message shall be necessary to give legal effect to that message and the receipt shall not take the form of an automated response. 

9. Web based product subscription services

9.1 Any withdrawals from a bank account/credit card by Sharenet for Web Based Products which are subscription services shall be treated as though they had been signed personally by the User in question and/or by whoever the User’s nominee bank account holder in question is. 

9.2 The Sharenet trading online access fee allows the User to access live prices and other Sharenet services. It is charged monthly (discount for quarterly or annual payments) to bank accounts and takes effect from the online registration date. 

9.3 Sharenet reserves the right to escalate subscription rates by giving 30 days notice by means of a message placed in a prominent position on the Website. 

9.4 Where a Web Based Product utilized by a User involves functionality which allows for financial market price lookups, then Sharenet reserves the right to impose limits on the user if excessive price lookups are detected. What an excessive number of price lookups is shall be determined by Sharenet in its sole discretion and the limitations imposed by Sharenet shall likewise be in its sole discretion. 

9.5 Annual subscriptions paid up front may be cancelled with 20 business days notice. Sharenet may impose a reasonable cancellation penalty with respect to any goods supplied, services provided or discounts granted to the consumer in contemplation of the agreement enduring for its intended fixed term and must credit the consumer with any amount that remains the property of the consumer as of the date of cancellation. 

9.6 Twenty days written notice is required for cancellations where the subscription Web Based Product is of an indefinite duration and any subscriptions paid in advance for periods in advance of the notice period shall not be refundable. 

9.7 Debit orders for subscription Web Based Products are run on the last working day of each month and are payable in advance. 

9.8 Prorate amounts are charged for partial months calculated on the number of days left in the month. 

10. Delivery time

10.1 Any products ordered from Sharenet shall be dispatched within a maximum of 14 days and any services ordered from Sharenet shall be activated within a maximum of 7 days after receiving all necessary details and payments. 

11. Refunds

11.1 Sharenet will not grant any refunds for services, except in the case where a user has experienced material problems utilising the product and service and the issue was not able to be resolved after following procedures requested by Sharenet’s support department within a period of 14 days after first notifying Sharenet of the problem and Sharenet having requested the User to follow its recommended procedures. Such requests for refunds must be submitted in writing within 30 days of the problem being notified to Sharenet to qualify for a refund. 

11.2 Section 44 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, No 25 of 2002 of the Republic of South Africa makes provision for a 7 day cooling-off period with respect to certain Web Based Products and clients may give us written notice to this effect should they wish to make use of it. 

11.3 Refunds will be paid on the 17th of each month and claims need to be lodged by the 14th.

12. JSE Disclaimer

12.1 The User is notified that much information provided by Sharenet is not sourced from the JSE, and furthermore some of it is calculated by Sharenet based on Information received from the JSE and other sources. 

12.1.1 In respect of delayed JSE data the JSE provides ruling price,buyer,seller 
12.1.2 In respect of delayed JSE time and sales data the JSE provides time, buy, sell, sale and volume 
12.1.3 In respect of live JSE data the JSE provides ruling price, buyer, seller and full orders (from which Sharenet calculates market depth). 
12.1.4 In respect of live JSE time and sales data the JSE provides time, buy, sell, sale and volume 
12.1.5 In respect of closing JSE data the JSE provides open, high, low, close and volume information. 
12.1.6 In respect to closing JSE data in download files the JSE provides open,high,low,close,volume,dy% and ey% 
12.1.7 JSE SENS feeds are supplied by the JSE 
12.1.8 Dividends and earnings (including dy,ey and pe ratios), directors dealings and financial information on companies are supplied by Profile Media
12.1.9 All other data is either derived, calculated by Sharenet or sourced elsewhere 
12.1.10 In addition Sharenet provides data from a wide range of other sources including Unit Trust Information, Currencies, Metals. Only information in relation to JSE instruments is sourced from the JSE and they do not supply other data. 

12.2 The following paragraph relates only to information supplied by the JSE: 

12.2.1 Sharenet is a licensed JSE data vendor and is licensed by the JSE to publish the Information on a live or delayed basis. The JSE shall not be responsible for any error or omission in the Information. All copyright and database rights in the Information belong to the JSE. Re-distribution of the data comprising the Information is not permitted without the express prior written consent of the JSE. You agree to acquaint yourself with and comply with any restrictions or conditions imposed upon the use, access, or storage of the Information as may be required by the JSE or Sharenet including the condition that in certain circumstances you will be required to enter into a separate agreement with the JSE or Sharenet.

13. General

13.1 The clause headings in this agreement have been inserted for convenience only and will not be taken into consideration in its interpretation. 

13.2 This agreement, together with the applicable terms and conditions contained in the Website which were accepted by the User as well as any application form completed by the User and accepted by Sharenet, constitutes the whole agreement between the parties with regard to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior verbal or written agreements or understandings or representations by or between the parties regarding the subject matter of this agreement, and the parties will not be entitled to rely, in any dispute regarding this agreement, on any terms, conditions or representations not expressly contained in this agreement. 

13.3 In respect to this agreement, Sharenet reserves the right to update it, so as to adapt to the changing legal environment. The decision to act upon this right is at Sharenet’s sole discretion and where Sharenet chooses to do so, a message to this effect will be placed in a prominent position on the Website. 

13.4 The validity, application and interpretation of this agreement will be governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. If any claim or dispute arises in relation to this agreement, the parties agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the South African courts, save that either party may, at its sole option prior to the commencement of litigation, refer such claim or dispute to arbitration in South Africa before a single arbitrator. The arbitrator shall be appointed on the application of either party to the Chairman of the South Africa Law Association. The arbitrator’s award shall be final and binding on both parties. The venue for such Arbitration shall be Cape Town. Furthermore, the parties agree that as a first measure, an application made to a South African court, will be confined to a court located in the Cape of Good Hope Provincial Division. 

13.5 In this agreement, unless a contrary intention clearly appears: 

13.5.1 words importing any one gender include the other two genders; 

13.5.2  words importing the singular include the plural and vice versa; and 

13.5.3 reference to natural persons include juristic persons (which includes trusts) and vice versa; 

13.6 If any provision in clause 1 and/or 13 is a substantive provision conferring rights or imposing obligations on any party, then notwithstanding that such provision is contained in clause 1 and/or 13, effect shall be given thereto as if such provision were a substantive provision in the body of the agreement. 

13.7 No agreement varying, adding to, deleting from, canceling or waiving any right in connection with this agreement and/or the applicable terms and conditions contained in the Website which were accepted by the User any/or any application form completed by the User and accepted by Sharenet shall be effective unless reduced to writing and signed by or on behalf of the parties or if clause 13.3 applies. 

13.8 Each and every clause and sub-clause in this agreement shall be severable from the other clauses in this agreement and in the event of any clause or sub-clause being held invalid by any competent court for any reason same shall not affect the validity of the remaining clauses or sub-clauses. 

13.9 The rule of interpretation which construes the interpretation of the agreement against the party who prepared it shall not be applicable. 

13.10 Any reference to an enactment is to that enactment as at the date of signature hereof and as amended or re-enacted from time to time. 

13.11 Where figures are referred to in numerals and in words, if there is any conflict between the two, the numerals shall prevail.

14. Domicilium address

14.1 The parties choose as their domicilium citandi et executandi for all purposes under this agreement, whether in respect of court process, notices or other documents or communications of whatsoever nature (including but not limited to the exercise of any option and/or right of first refusal set out in this agreement), the following addresses: 

14.2 Sharenet At the physical address stipulated in the Website as being the physical address of Sharenet. 

14.3 The User At such physical and/or postal address as the User supplies to Sharenet when making application for and/or when purchasing; subscribing for; using or enrolling for a Web Based Product. 

14.4 Any notice or communications required or permitted to be given in terms of this agreement shall be valid and effective only if in writing but it shall be competent to give notice by telefax or by digitally signed emailed documentation. 

14.5 Any party may by notice to any other party change the physical address chosen as its domicilium citandi et executandi vis-a-vis that party to another physical address or its telefax number: Provided that the change shall become effective vis-a-vis that addressee on the fifth working day from the deemed receipt of the notice by the addressee. 

14.6 Any document: 

14.6.1  sent by prepaid registered post in a correctly addressed envelope to any party at its domicilium citandi et executandi shall be deemed to have been received on the fourth working day after posting (unless the contrary is proved); 

14.6.2 delivered by hand to a responsible person during ordinary business hours at its domicilium citandi et executandi shall be deemed to have been received on the day of delivery; or 

14.6.3  sent by telefax to its chosen telefax number shall be deemed to have been received on the date of dispatch (unless the contrary is proved); 

14.6.4  sent by email, to its chosen email address shall be deemed to have been received on the date of dispatch (unless the contrary is proved). 

14.7  Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein contained a written notice or communication actually received by a party shall be an adequate written notice or communication to it notwithstanding that it was not sent to or delivered at its chosen domicilium citandi et executandi. 

15. Breach

15.1 Should either party hereto be in breach of this agreement and should such party remain in breach 7 days after having received written notice from the other party (“the Aggrieved Party”) then the Aggrieved Party shall be entitled, without prejudice to any other remedy in law which such party may have, to terminate this agreement on written notice to the defaulting party. 

15.2 A cancellation in terms of clause 15.1 above shall pertain to the contract between Sharenet and a User with respect to that and/or those Web Based Products to which the breach pertains. 

15.3  Without prejudice to, and in addition to, clause 

15.3.1 above, Sharenet shall be entitled, in its sole discretion, to immediately suspend a User’s use of a Web Based Product in the event of the User falling into default with respect to any payment due for the Web Based Product in question and to maintain such suspension until the User pays up all amounts due to Sharenet.

Globally, financial regulatory bodies are increasingly focused on market conduct rules across the financial markets and products. Consequently, new financial regulation comes into force on an ongoing basis, and most recently through the introduction of Market Abuse Regulation.

It is therefore essential that you, as a client of THE SHARENET GROUP, receive information on and gain insight into which part of the said rules and regulations you are required to comply with. Below, you will find an overall description of the rules. You will also find a non-exhaustive list describing situations which you need to avoid as these constitute violations of market rules.

Market conduct rules

Regulation of the financial markets and market conduct rules are aimed at ensuring trust and integrity and thus promoting integrated, efficient and transparent markets. Specific rules set forth unacceptable market conduct by prohibiting the abuse of insider information and various forms of market manipulation. The exchanges/trading venues may have specific rules about market disruption so at the end of this document you will find links to the relevant sites. One example of such rules is that some exchanges have specific limits for the size of positions in various derivatives.

Market conduct rules and regulation applies to all individuals and all legal entities; therefore, all market participants are obliged to familiarize themselves with the relevant rules and regulations. It should be noted that the responsibility of complying with the specific rules lies solely with the individual market participant, and i.e. you as our client.

Trading activity is being monitored and any suspicious activity will be investigated by the relevant markets and authorities. The following is a non-exhaustive list of examples of conduct that violate market conduct rules:

• Taking advantage of price-sensitive non-published information concerning a company in order to make a profit or avoid incurring losses by buying or selling stocks and/derivatives or to attempt to take advantage of the said information in any other way (insider trading).
• Passing on insider information.
• Disseminating false or misleading information on circumstances of substantial importance for the valuation of a security (e.g. a company’s earnings, orders or product pipeline or a general supply shortage).
• Disseminating false or misleading information, rumors or messages that may influence the price of a security with the intent to exploit the resulting price movement.
• Entering low-volume purchase orders with successively higher prices to simulate an increased demand amid rising prices (painting the tape).
• Simultaneously buying and selling the same securities for the account of one and the same beneficial owner to create false or misleading signals regarding the supply of, demand for, or market price of securities (wash trades).
• To distort liquidity or prices by entering equal but opposite buy and sell orders in the same security by prior mutual agreement between a number of parties (matched orders or daisy chains coordinated among a number of parties).
• Constricting the market by building up large positions (cornering) or depositing securities with third-parties (parking) to distort securities prices (creating a squeeze).
• Buying or selling securities shortly before the exchange closes with the intent to influence closing prices (marking the close).
• Buying or selling securities to move prices (ramping) or keep them at a specific level (e.g. capping, pegging).
• Influencing commodity prices to give out false or misleading signals regarding the supply of or demand for securities.
• Placing orders but with no intention to execute (Spoofing).
• Similar to spoofing, market participants “layer” or “bait” other market participants to react and trade with a bona fide order on the other side of the market without intention to trade (Layering).
• Attempting to push down the price of a stock by heavy selling or short selling (bear raiding)

For further information regarding market regulations and practices please make sure and visit the following exchanges:

To comply with the Financial Intelligence Centre Amendment Act (as may be amended from time to time), The Sharenet Group is required to collect information on your identity and residential address as well as screen your information against various sanctions databases and other lists.

This verification and screening process includes accessing and using information held in a database or other electronic format through third party agencies. In carrying out these electronic verifications, other agencies may retain a record of the enquiry and information given to them.

Your information may be disclosed to law enforcement agencies and regulators where required as well as be reportable in terms of tax requirements (including SARS, FATCA and CRS reporting, if applicable).

Further, your information may be shared with The Sharenet Group’s affiliates, associates as well as third party service providers, where necessary, in order for The Sharenet Group to offer its services to you and to offer services that are similar or related to the products and services provided or previously provided to you.

If you do not consent to the use of your personal data in this way, then you may not proceed with this application. By proceeding with this application, you agree to the use of your information in this way.

1.Introduction

1.1 The General Code of Conduct for Financial Services Providers and Representatives (the “Code”) published in terms of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, No. 37 of 2002 (“FAIS”), requires every Financial Services Provider (“FSP”) to adopt, implement and maintain a Conflict of Interest Management Policy.

1.2 All Employees and Associates of Sharenet Investments (Pty) Ltd. as FAIS registered FSPs, (together “Sharenet”), must perform their duties independently and act in the best interests of Sharenet’s existing and potential clients (“Clients”).

1.3 Sharenet has introduced reasonable mechanisms to identify Conflicts of Interest between:  

• itself, Employees and Clients; and
• between different Clients.

1.4 In considering potential Conflicts of Interest, Sharenet considers: (i) the structure and business activities of Sharenet; and (ii) any proposed new business activities of Sharenet.

1.5 Sharenet is obliged to render unbiased and fair financial services to Clients. Accordingly, we must take all reasonable steps to avoid any business activities and/or practices that may create Conflicts of Interest between Sharenet and Employee interests, and the interests of Clients. In the event that it is not possible to avoid a Conflict of Interest, Sharenet will take all reasonable steps to mitigate the impact as well as appropriately disclosing any such Conflict of Interest to Clients.

1.6 Defined terms not otherwise defined herein are listed in the Appendix.

2. Purpose of this Policy

The purpose of this Conflicts of Interest Management Policy is primarily to provide mechanisms for the identification and management of Conflicts of Interest that may arise in the rendering of financial services to Clients.

3. Application of this Policy

This Conflicts of Interest Management Policy applies to all Employees and must be read together with the related policies listed below, some of which reflect specific categories of Conflicts of Interest: 

• Gifts and Inducements;
• Outside Interests and Personal Account Investing;
• Insider Trading;
• Code of Ethics;
• Order Execution;
• Transaction Costs Disclosure;
• Counterparty and Credit Risk;
• Proprietary Trading (note: while Sharenet has a policy in place, it does not engage in any proprietary trading);

Mechanisms through which Sharenet identifies and manages actual or potential Conflicts of Interest

4.1 All Employees are required to report any potential or actual Conflicts of Interest to the Compliance Department. The onus is on every Employee to comply with this Policy. Should any individual be uncertain as to whether they are in a conflicted situation e.g.: whether the offer they wish to make or the offer which has been made to him/her, or whether a particular action or omission amounts to a Conflict of Interest, then he/she should contact the Compliance Department immediately. 

4.2 Every Department Head must, on an ongoing basis, identify any actual or potential Conflicts of Interest which may arise within his or her area. These must be reported to the Compliance Department. The Compliance Department maintains a Conflicts of Interest Register which is reviewed periodically with senior management to determine whether conflicts already identified are still valid, whether the mitigation strategies in place operate effectively and whether there are any new or potential conflicts that may have arisen since the last review.

4.3 The Compliance Department will investigate any potential or actual Conflicts of Interest to determine whether such conflicts are conflicts as contemplated in FAIS or any other applicable legislation. The Compliance Department, in conjunction with senior management, will determine whether such Conflicts of Interest are avoidable or unavoidable conflicts.

4.4 If a Conflict of Interest is identified as being avoidable, then Sharenet will adopt the necessary internal procedures to ensure that the activity that gives rise to the avoidable conflict, is avoided.

4.5 If a Conflict of Interest is identified as being unavoidable, the Compliance Department, in conjunction with senior management, will establish a strategy to mitigate the risk of such Conflict of Interest impacting negatively on Sharenet’s ability to render fair and unbiased services to affected Clients.

4.6 Sharenet will disclose any specific Conflict of Interest impacting a Client to such impacted Client, together with the mitigation strategy employed.

4.7 Employees are encouraged to make use of the anonymous “whistleblowing hotline” which is available to all Employees, details of which appear in the Whistleblowing Policy and on the Compliance Home Page.

5. Guidelines in relation to Financial or Ownership Interests

No Employee may accept/give a Financial Interest or Ownership Interest from/to a Third Party, other than an Immaterial Financial Interest (refer to the Gifts and Inducements Policy).

Sharenet may not offer any Financial Interest to an Employee which incentivizes such Employee to:

• Give preference to the quantity of business over quality of service rendered to Clients;
• Give preference to a specific product supplier in the event that it is possible to recommend more than   one supplier to a Client; and/or
• Give preference to a specific product in the event that it is possible to recommend more than one  product to a Client.

No Employee may directly or indirectly refer any actual or potential item of designated investment business to another person on their own initiative or on instruction from Sharenet, if it is likely to conflict with any duty that Sharenet owes to its Clients or any duty which such recipient firm owes to its Clients.

6. Representative’s entitlement to Financial Interest

As consideration for providing services to Clients, Representatives are entitled to remuneration by salary and other benefits in terms of their contracts of employments. No Employee may receive a Financial Interest that leads to a potential Conflict of Interest between the Employee and any Clients; 

No Employee may be remunerated in such a way that encourages that Employee to contravene this Policy.

7. Management of Conflicts of Interest

7.1  Once an actual or potential Conflict of Interest has been identified, it must be reported to the Compliance Department in the prescribed manner.

7.2 The Compliance Department will keep a record of all actual or potential Conflicts of Interest in the Conflicts of Interest Register.

7.3 The Compliance Department is responsible for monitoring Sharenet’s adherence to the Conflicts of Interests Management Policy (as well as adherence to the policies relating to the identified categories of potential Conflicts of Interests).

7.4 All Employees are required to declare on an annual basis that they have complied with the Conflicts of Interests Management Policy and related policies.

7.5 The Conflicts of Interests Management Policy and related policies are reviewed annually, and where necessary, updated to ensure that the provisions remain sufficient to identify, assess, evaluate and mitigate Conflicts of Interest.

8. Consequences for non-compliance

If any Employee fails to comply with the contents of this Policy or avoids same through any means, it will be regarded as a breach of his/her employment contract. This will potentially render the individual liable to sanction under both the FAIS Act and Sharenet’s disciplinary procedures.

9. Training of relevant Policies

All Employees must know and understand the Conflicts of Interest Management Policy as well as the policies relating to the identified categories of potential Conflicts of Interests. Appropriate training will be provided to all Employees on a periodic basis.

10. Acceptance and Publication of the Conflicts of Interest

The Board has adopted this Conflicts of Interest Management Policy as well as the policies relating to the identified categories of potential Conflicts of Interest. The Conflicts of Interest Management Policy is available to all Employees in the CFM Compliance Manual on the Compliance Home Page.

Appendix

Associate means in the case of a company, any subsidiary or holding company of that company, any other subsidiary of that holding company and any other company of which that holding company is a subsidiary.

Conflict of Interest means any situation in which Sharenet or an Employee has an actual or potential Interest that may, in rendering a financial service to a Client:

• Influence the objective performance of Sharenet’s obligations to that Client; or
• Prevent Sharenet or an Employee from rendering an unbiased and fair financial service to that Client, or from acting in the interests of that Client.

Employee includes:

• A director
• An employee of any Sharenet group company, including a temporary employee and an employee employed on a fixed-term contract basis;
• Any investment vehicle (including a trust) in which an employee has an interest;

Financial Interest: means any cash, cash equivalent, voucher, gift, service, advantage, benefit, discount, domestic or foreign travel, hospitality, accommodation, sponsorship, other incentive or valuable consideration, other than:

• Training, that is not exclusively available to a selected group of providers or representatives, on products and legal matters relating to those products; but excluding travel and accommodation associated with that training;
• General financial and industry information; and
• Technological systems of a third party necessary for the rendering of a financial service 

Immaterial Financial Interest: means any financial interest with a determinable monetary value, the aggregate of which does not exceed ZAR1 000 in any calendar year in relation to the same Third Party in such calendar year.

Representative means any natural person who renders a financial service to a client for and on behalf of an FSP in terms of conditions of employment or any other mandate.

Ownership Interest means:

• Any equity or proprietary interest, other than equity or an proprietary interest held as an approved nominee on behalf of another person; and
• Includes any dividend, profit share or similar benefit derived from that equity or ownership interest.

Third Party means:

• A product supplier within the financial services industry
• A financial services provider (FSP)
• Any other service provider which provides or may potentially provide services
• All clients or potential clients for whom Sharenet renders a permitted financial service
• Securities issuers
• An associate of any of the above

Should you have a complaint against a representative of Sharenet, which you can’t settle with us, please address your grievance in writing to the FAIS Ombud, which is there to provide redress-mechanisms regarding inappropriate and inadequate financial services and related issues.

FAIS OMBUD
PO Box 74571
Lynnwood Ridge
0040
Tel +27 (12) 470 9080
Fax +27 (12) 348 3447

Compliance with the FAIS Act is monitored by an FSCA authorised Compliance Officer, Etude Compliance Services who is contactable on Tel: +27 (21) 852 6667 or email: info@etude.co.za.

Sharenet is fully committed to safeguarding your privacy online or otherwise and the success of our business depends upon our ability to maintain the trust of our clients. As part of our day to day business operations we collect certain personal information about our clients. This privacy policy aims to provide a summary of the type of information we collect and how the information is used. The policy does not cover any external third party websites that may be accessed through the links provided on our website.

This policy complies with Section 51 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, 2002.

Capture and Use of Information

Sharenet (Pty) Ltd is the sole owner of the information collected from visitors to our site. We will not sell, share, rent or disclose this information to other parties in ways different from what is disclosed in this statement. 

We collect two types of information from our clients and visitors to our website:

• Personal information which includes but is not limited to our client’s name, residential address, date of birth, e-mail address, employment details and information relating to your financial circumstances; and
• Traffic pattern information relating to the visitors to our website.

The personal information of a client is collected at the time of applying for a Sharenet service. Sharenet will limit the collection of personal information to what is necessary in order for us to provide the client with the required products and services.
Sharenet may also collect other information from time to time, for example by client surveys which may be used for research and feedback purposes to improve the services and products we offer.
Sharenet collects traffic pattern information such as information on the pages the visitors to our website access and how many users log into our platform(s) on a daily basis. This kind of information is only used in an aggregated form.

In some instances, we may pass information to third parties involved in the relevant Sharenet Service (such as stock brokers who you specifically sign up with). You will generally know if such a transfer of your information happens.

Material you post on interactive forums or chatrooms in Sharenet services will be available to others using the Service.

Disclosure of your information

Information collected may be disclosed to law enforcement agencies and other relevant organisations for crime detection and prevention purposes.
Where applicable, Sharenet may exchange information or share the personal data of the client with the introducing brokers with whom the client may have an agreement and where the client has consented to the disclosure of that information. Sharenet does not sell any personal data to third parties.

Use of cookies

A cookie is a small data file that most major websites write onto the visitor’s hard disk for record keeping purposes when the website was visited. Cookies are used by Sharenet to measure activity on the website and to improve the visitor’s experience, for example by remembering the passwords and viewing preferences, thus allowing the user to visit various member-only parts of the website without re-registering. Sharenet also use cookies to measure activity on our website and make improvements based upon which areas are popular and those which are not.
Sharenet does not use cookies to retrieve information which was not originally sent in a cookie and does not use information transferred through cookies for any direct promotional or marketing purposes without consent. Sharenet may share traffic pattern information with third parties for both advertising and promotional purposes.

IP Addresses

Sharenet uses IP addresses to analyse trends, track visitor’s movements, and gather broad demographic information for aggregate use. IP addresses are not linked to personally identifiable information. Based on the aggregated information gained from cookies and IP addresses, statistical reports are generated for use by Sharenet management and to aid in selling advertising in our free areas. Aggregate information will never identify you, it only defines site visitors in general terms.

Security

Sharenet takes every precaution to protect our users’ information. We use multiple levels of security starting with SSL on your browser and ending with a trusted database and operating system.

See our Security Notice. 

Use of your information collected

Sharenet uses both the personal and aggregated information that is collected to:

• improve the content and layout of the website;
• notify clients about updates to the website; and
• send out newsletters or information for marketing purposes about product and services offered that are similar or related to the products and services provided or previously provided to the client.

Should the client not wish to receive such communications, please email: unsubscribed@Sharenet.co.za

Sharenet may make changes to this privacy policy from time to time for any reason and will post an updated version of this policy on this website.

Accuracy of your personal information

We endeavour to ensure that the personal information we hold about you is accurate and up to date. If the data we hold about you proves inaccurate or outdated, we will correct it upon your request.

Notification of Changes 

If we decide to change our privacy policy, we will post those changes on our Homepage so our users are always aware of what information we collect and how we use it. 

CFD TRADING TERMS & CONDITIONS

1.1. Markets can be highly volatile and an investment reliant on the market carries substantial risk of loss. A relatively small market movement can achieve substantial gains but can also suffer substantial losses which can exceed your original investment.

1.2. Client to deposit or transfer sufficient cash margin into securities account before the execution of any transactions. Margin percentages are subject to change and will always be available on the trading platform. Client’s initial margin deposit will only be returned on close out of underlying CFD position.

1.3. Client’s available cash position will be calculated for use on new positions net of utilised initial margin and variation margin required to fund 100% of the initial margin required for all open holdings.

1.4. No CFD transactions may be executed without client meeting cash margin requirements.

1.5. Commission is levied on full underlying CFD trade value.

1.6. Debit interest is levied on full value of underlying long CFD positions.

1.7. Credit interest is accrued on full value of underlying short CFD positions.

1.8. Debit interest is levied on domestic accounts with a negative “Net fee Equity” at market rate + 3%

1.9. Debit interest is levied on offshore accounts with a negative “Net fee Equity” at market rate + 3%

1.10. Commission fees charged may change from time to time but will always be available www.sharenetsecurities.co.za . Any variation of the fees shall be by way of written notification to you at least one month prior to its implementation.

1.11. Should a client wish to sell short, then settlement division to source shares in the market prior to execution of the sale.

1.12. If a client’s CFD position in an underlying stock is removed from the Top 100 stock/ETF list, then the client will be obliged to close out the underlying CFD position immediately.

1.13. If a client’s CFD position in an underlying stock/ETF is suspended from trading on the relevant exchange, then market value of stock will be deemed to be nil and client will be obliged to fully fund underlying CFD position.

1.14. Collateral offered on the Top 100 stock list may at any time be amended higher, lower, or removed, then the client will be obliged to fully fund underlying CFD positions or close out the underlying CFD positions immediately.

MARGIN (initial & variation)

1.1. Trading Platform to reach the client electronically via email and push notification to advise that all CFD positions will be automatically closed out after 23 hours due to margin utilization above 100%.

1.2. Trading Platform to reach the client electronically via email and push notification to advise that all CFD positions will be automatically closed out with immediate effect due to margin utilization above 150%.

CONDITIONS

* All charges exclude applicable country VAT rates, and statutory charges such as Securities Tax.