CIRO has two important sets of rules to know for the exam. The easiest way to separate them is: IDPC focuses on investment dealers and their relationships with clients, while UMIR focuses on trading in the market.

 

1️⃣ IDPC Rules

📌 Short Description: Rules that tell investment dealers and their representatives how they must operate and deal with clients.

🌟 Golden Point: CIRO creates/enforces IDPC Rules → when the issue involves an investment dealer, representative, client account, KYC, suitability, supervision, compliance, or dealer capital, think IDPC Rules.

🔑 Think: Dealer + Client 👤🏢

Examples:

  • KYC and suitability

  • Client accounts

  • Representative conduct

  • Dealer supervision

  • Compliance systems

  • Dealer capital requirements

 

2️⃣ UMIR — Universal Market Integrity Rules

📌 Short Description: Rules that govern how trading must be conducted on Canadian marketplaces overseen by CIRO.

🌟 Golden Point: CIRO administers and enforces UMIR → when the issue involves trading activity, market manipulation, short selling, or order handling on a marketplace, think UMIR.

🔑 Think: Trading + Market 📈

Examples:

  • Market Manipulation 🎭 → Creating false or misleading trading activity or prices.
  • Spoofing 👻 → Entering orders you do not genuinely intend to execute to mislead the market.
  • Front Running 🏃 → Improperly trading before a client order using knowledge of that order.
  • Short-Selling Requirements 📉 → Rules that must be followed when selling securities short.
  • Order Handling 📋 → Rules governing how orders are entered, managed, and executed.
  • Fair and Orderly Trading ⚖️ → Rules designed to maintain fair and properly functioning markets.

 

🌟 Golden Exam Rule:

CIRO-IDPC → What’s happening inside the Dealer and with Clients 🏢👤

CIRO-UMIR → What’s happening in the Market when Trading 📈

Provincial Regulator → Issuers, disclosure & securities laws 🏛️

CSA → Coordination & consistent rules across Canada 🇨🇦

PreviousNext