CBUAE Consumer Protection for Exchange Company Frontline Staff
Course Description:
This comprehensive course is designed to equip frontline staff at Exchange Companies licensed by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) with a thorough understanding of the CBUAE Consumer Protection Regulation (April 2025) and accompanying Standards. This course will focus on the practical application of these regulatory requirements in daily interactions with consumers, ensuring ethical conduct, transparency, and compliance in the provision of remittance, transfer, and foreign exchange services within the UAE. Participants will gain essential knowledge and skills to deliver excellent customer service while adhering to the highest regulatory standards set by the CBUAE.
Course Objectives:
You are correct. The previous ‘Course Objectives’ section described the anticipated outcomes of the course rather than the topics it would cover.
Here is the revised ‘Course Objectives’ section for the “CBUAE Consumer Protection for Exchange Company Frontline Staff” course:
Course Objectives:
The objective of the training is to introduce the participants to the following:
- The CBUAE Consumer Protection Framework: An overview of the regulations and standards.
- Disclosure and Transparency in Exchange Services: Requirements for providing clear information to consumers.
- Responsible Market and Business Conduct: Ethical and professional standards for interacting with consumers.
- Effective Handling of Consumer Complaints: Procedures for managing and resolving complaints.
- Consumer Education and Awareness: The role of Exchange Companies in informing consumers.
- Financial Inclusion and Serving Vulnerable Consumers: Addressing the needs of diverse consumer groups.
- Advertising Regulations for Exchange Services: Rules governing the promotion of exchange services.
- Protection of Consumer Data and Assets: Ensuring the security of consumer information and funds.
- Staff Training, Competency, and Ethical Conduct: Requirements for staff knowledge, skills, and professional behaviour.
Course Outline:
Introduction to CBUAE Consumer Protection Framework
- Overview of the CBUAE’s mandate for consumer protection.
- Understanding the scope and application of the Consumer Protection Regulation and Standards to Licensed Financial Institutions, including Exchange Companies.
- Key definitions relevant to Exchange Company operations: Consumers, Financial Products and/or Services, Fees, Advertising, Complaints, Licensed Financial Institutions, Market, Staff, Third Party, Stored Value Facilities, Remittances, Transfers, and Foreign Exchange.
- The principle-based structure of the Regulation and the mandatory nature of the Standards.
- Interaction with other regulatory requirements.
Disclosure and Transparency in Exchange Services
- General disclosure requirements applicable to all financial products and services provided by Exchange Companies.
- Specific disclosure requirements for remittance, transfer, and foreign exchange products and/or services.
- Providing clear information about applicable Fees and exchange rates.
- Disclosing buy and sell rates for major foreign currencies.
- Providing information prior to undertaking remittance transactions: destination country, beneficiary details, amount in AED and foreign currency, fees, exchange rate.
- Ensuring information is accurate, sufficient, consistent, and easily understandable for consumers.
- Importance of clear and plain language, avoiding fine print and jargon.
- Providing information through all communication channels: branches, websites, mobile applications, etc..
- Accessibility of information for People of Determination.
Responsible Market and Business Conduct
- Upholding the integrity of the financial market through responsible activities.
- Monitoring and upholding high ethical practices in the market.
- Prohibition of unfair sales, marketing, and pricing practices.
- Ensuring staff act competently, efficiently, and professionally.
- Providing accurate information and services entrusted to them.
- Maintaining sufficient knowledge of remittance, transfer, and foreign exchange products and/or services to assist and educate consumers.
- Understanding and adhering to the internal code of conduct.
- Avoiding misleading or abusive sales practices and exploitation of consumer vulnerabilities.
- Fair treatment of consumers.
Handling Consumer Complaints Effectively
- Understanding the definition of a complaint.
- The importance of effective complaint management and resolution.
- Internal complaint handling procedures within the Exchange Company.
- Training staff on identifying and handling complaints.
- Informing consumers about the complaint process.
- Escalation of unresolved complaints.
Consumer Education and Awareness in Exchange Services
- The role of Exchange Companies in raising public awareness of exchange services and their inherent risks.
- Providing unbiased educational information to consumers.
- Assisting consumers in developing knowledge, skills, and confidence to make informed decisions.
- Explaining the fees, exchange rates, and potential risks associated with exchange services.
- Collaboration with the Central Bank on financial education initiatives.
Financial Inclusion and Serving Vulnerable Consumers
- Ensuring services are accessible to diverse consumer groups.
- Providing appropriate access and conveniences for People of Determination at physical locations.
- Treating all consumers fairly, regardless of their circumstances.
- Making information suitable and comprehensible to vulnerable consumers.
Advertising Regulations for Exchange Services
- Applying advertising standards to all channels: branches, websites, mobile apps, etc..
- Ensuring advertisements are available in Arabic and English.
- Advertisements must be clear, fair, and not misleading.
- Providing easy access to details of eligibility criteria.
- Ensuring marketing staff explain key terms, benefits, and risks.
- Including necessary warning statements in advertising materials.
Protection of Consumer Data and Assets
- Importance of securing consumer data and digital transactions.
- Implementing detailed activity monitoring.
- Adhering to the Exchange Company’s policies and procedures for data protection.
- Maintaining confidentiality of consumer information.
Staff Training, Competency, and Ethical Conduct
- The Board’s responsibility for ensuring ethical business conduct.
- Developing and maintaining appropriate staff competency levels.
- Addressing competency gaps through additional training.
- Verifying and documenting staff training and qualifications.
- Providing suitable training on Consumer Protection Regulations and Standards.
- Ensuring staff update and enhance their professional knowledge on an ongoing basis.
- Understanding policies related to staff remuneration and appraisal to prevent mis-selling and conflicts of interest.
Course Outline:
Upon successful completion of this course, frontline staff at Exchange Companies will be able to:
- Confidently apply the CBUAE Consumer Protection Regulation and Standards in their daily tasks.
- Provide clear, accurate, and timely information to consumers regarding exchange services.
- Deliver excellent customer service while adhering to ethical and professional standards.
- Effectively address consumer inquiries and complaints following established procedures.
- Contribute to a culture of consumer protection within the Exchange Company.
- Support financial inclusion by understanding and addressing the needs of diverse consumers.
- Ensure compliance with advertising regulations in all promotional activities.
- Contribute to the security and confidentiality of consumer data.
- Demonstrate the required knowledge and competency in their role as frontline staff in an Exchange Company.
Course Outline:
This course will employ a variety of interactive learning methods to ensure effective knowledge transfer and engagement, including:
- Interactive lectures with real-life case studies relevant to Exchange Company operations.
- Group discussions to share experiences and best practices in applying the regulations.
- Role-playing exercises to practice effective communication and complaint handling skills.
- Quizzes and knowledge checks to reinforce understanding of key concepts.
- Review of the regulation and standards and practical exercises on interpreting relevant articles and clauses.
Assessment Methods:
Participants’ understanding and application of the course material will be assessed through a combination of methods:
- Formative assessments through in-class quizzes and participation in discussions.
- Summative assessment through a final examination covering the key principles and requirements of the CBUAE Consumer Protection Regulation and Standards, with a focus on their application in the context of Exchange Companies.
- Practical case study analysis requiring participants to apply their knowledge to realistic scenarios encountered by frontline staff in Exchange Companies.