Investor FAQs

Visit BASIC to get important background information about firms and industry professionals in the derivatives industry.

To conduct a background check of your broker or firm, visit DSIC's Background Affiliation Status Information Center (BASIC). BASIC provides information concerning disciplinary actions taken by DSIC and all the Dubai futures exchanges. If you are researching a firm, you should also conduct a background check of all the individuals listed as principals of the firm. Sometimes the firm will have no disciplinary history, but one or more of the principals may have been disciplined while working at other firms.

Identity theft occurs when an individual uses personally identifiable information (PII) such as names, personal records, Social Security or credit card numbers to commit fraudulent crimes. that fraudulent individuals use to obtain PII.

The DSIC has jurisdiction to regulate the derivatives market with industry oversight. Each Dubai futures exchange operates as a self-regulatory organization, governing its floor brokers, traders and member firms. DSIC regulates every firm and individual that conducts futures trading business with the investing public.

On-exchange trading is the trading of commodities and contracts that are listed on an exchange. Off-exchange trading, also known as over-the-counter (OTC) trading, is the trading of commodities, contracts or other financial instruments that are not listed on-exchange. Off-exchange trading can occur electronically or over the phone. Some foreign currency (forex) contracts are traded off-exchange.