Report violations in the public interest

General Information

The ways in which reporting of legal violations can be done, according to Law no. 361/2022, with subsequent amendments and completions, are:

• Internal reporting;
• External reporting.

In essence, Law no. 361/2022, with subsequent amendments and completions, establishes a unified framework for reporting legal violations, as follows:

• Whistleblowers are encouraged to first use the internal channels within the entity where they work before resorting to external reporting channels or making a public disclosure. This is important because it helps increase whistleblowers' trust that the entity can handle such reports.
• Whistleblowers do not lose their protection if they choose to use external channels directly.
• Whistleblower protection includes: protecting their identity; prohibiting reprisals (such as suspension of the employment contract, dismissal, changes to working hours, blocking of professional training, negative performance evaluations, intimidation, harassment, discrimination, etc.); reversing the burden of proof and the presumption of good faith, as well as exempting the whistleblower from liability.

Internal Reporting Procedure

The whistleblower in the public interest reports in writing, electronically, by communicating to the email address: avertizor.integritate@fond-fci.ro , or in person, upon request by the whistleblower in the public interest.

External Reporting Procedure

Reporting legal violations by the whistleblower in the public interest through external reporting is submitted according to the provisions of Law no. 361/2022 and Law no. 88/2021 regarding the organization and operation of the Investor Compensation Fund to the Financial Supervisory Authority, as the institution responsible for establishing the organization and operation of the Fund through its own statute approved by the Financial Supervisory Authority's Board, based on the proposal of the Fund's Board of Directors, using the external channel provided by the authority, namely:

• To the dedicated email address: avertizareininterespublic@asfromania.ro ;
• By mail to the address: Splaiul Independenței nr. 15, postal code 050092, Sector 5, Bucharest. Addressee: Financial Supervisory Authority. The envelope will be sealed, marked "CONFIDENTIAL," with the mention: "Report according to the provisions of Law no. 361/2022, regarding the protection of whistleblowers in the public interest";
• In person, by arranging a meeting with the designated employee from Monday to Thursday, between 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM, and Friday between 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
• National Integrity Agency.

The report must contain at least the following information:

• Name and surname;
• Contact details of the whistleblower in the public interest;
• The professional context in which the information was obtained;
• The person involved, if known;
• Description of the act that may constitute a legal violation;
• Evidence supporting the report, if applicable;
• Date and signature, if applicable.

Reports that do not include the name, surname, contact details, or signature of the whistleblower in the public interest will be examined and resolved to the extent that they contain clues about legal violations.

A person who reports legal violations anonymously cannot be notified about the registration of the report, the progress made, or the way the matter was resolved.

Communications
The designated person is obliged to send the whistleblower in the public interest a confirmation of receipt of the report within no more than 7 calendar days from the receipt of the report.

Classifying the Report

In the case where the report is submitted anonymously or does not contain sufficient information to allow its analysis and resolution, and if the request for additional information is not fulfilled within 15 days, the report will be classified, with the classification solution and the legal grounds for the classification communicated.

The report will also be classified if, after a preliminary analysis, it is found that it does not fall within the scope of the legal provisions regarding the protection of whistleblowers in the public interest, or if it is determined that the person who made the report is not a whistleblower in the public interest.

In the case of receiving multiple reports on the same subject, these will be consolidated, and the designated employee will send a single notification.