“The most significant development in 2011 was the increased number of enquiries linked to “Participaciones Preferentes”, due to the investors’ unfamiliarity with this financial product”, explained Carlos Fernández, Investor Ombudsman for the Madrid Stock Exchange at the presentation of the 2011 Report.
“Last year 15 claims were filed, compared to 30 in 2009. This sharp decline is satisfactory. Part of the claims filed are preceded by an enquiry, which makes the informative and conciliatory work of this Office more successful”, he added.
Private investors are usually the leading requesters of information, although in the last two years they have gone from accounting for 69% in 2009 to 80% in 2011. Market members and financial entities ranked second although a slight decrease can be observed since 2009, from 18% to14%.
The focus of investor enquiries has changed in 2011 mainly in information about the stock exchange, which decreased 23% from the previous year, while enquiries under the “Others” category have grown significantly, from 7% to 30%. This increase is linked to insufficient information given to investors about the characteristics and conditions of the “Participaciones Preferentes”.
In the protection service section it is worth highlighting the reduction of contentious claims in 2011 compared to a year earlier, as part of the total number of claims processed by the Ombudsman. They account for 34%, compared with 55% in 2010 and are linked to investor’s complaints about the execution of financial transactions by the intermediary.