Regulatory Compliance · Cyprus · EU · Practitioner
Cyprus Financial Services Regulation: MiFID II and CySEC Rules
The Cyprus Investment Firm rulebook end to end: MiFID II, its Cyprus transposition in Law 87(I)/2017 and the CySEC circulars that turn it into daily practice. Six modules, three case studies and a 15-question final exam, built for CySEC certificate holders logging their annual CPD hours.
- 5
- CPD hours
- 11
- Units
- 80%
- Pass mark
- Cyprus · EU
- Jurisdiction
Course specification
What you are buying
The CPD hours below are the hours printed on your certificate.
| CPD hours | 5 |
|---|---|
| Level | Practitioner |
| Units | 11 |
| Duration | 11 units · about 6½ hours of study · 5 CPD hours, self-paced |
| Delivery | Online, self-paced |
| Assessment | 15-question final exam, 12 correct to pass, 25-minute timer |
| Pass mark | 80% |
| Jurisdiction | Cyprus · EU |
| Language | English |
| Prerequisites | None |
| Certification | Pnyx Hill Academy Certificate of Professional Achievement |
Learning outcomes
What you will be able to do
On completing this course you will be able to:
- Trace how EU investment-services regulation evolved from MiFID I through MiFID II to the 2024 MiFID II and MiFIR Reviews, and place Cyprus within that story.
- Read the CIF Obligation Stack under Law 87(I)/2017 layer by layer — organisational, prudential, conduct, market-integrity, and market-transparency rules.
- Map the changes introduced by the 2024 MiFID II Review and the MiFIR Review onto a firm's existing policies, and identify the transitional dates that matter.
- Distinguish retail, professional, and eligible-counterparty clients under Annex II MiFID II, and open the correct file for the service being provided.
- Produce a suitability report that satisfies Article 25 MiFID II, the Delegated Regulation, and the revised ESMA suitability guidelines (C579).
- Apply the appropriateness perimeter, including the ESMA copy-trading supervisory briefing, without over- or under-scoping the assessment.
- Design a product-governance file for a target market and distribution strategy that holds up under Article 16(3) MiFID II and Circular C603.
- File a transaction report under Article 26 MiFIR and RTS 22, and recognise when a STOR goes to CySEC instead under the Market Abuse Regulation.
- Sequence a breach report to CySEC through the practical guide on reporting breaches (C575) in the right order: escalate internally, assess, notify, then put it right.
- Explain the range of sanctions under Title VI (Articles 70 to 73) of Law 87(I)/2017, how settlement works, and the 75-day appeal route to the Administrative Court.
Curriculum
11 units, start to certificate
The case studies come before the final exam, so you apply the rules before you are tested on them.
M0 Welcome to the course Video
In 5 CPD hours across six modules and three case studies, this course walks the Cyprus Investment Firm rulebook end to end — MiFID II, its Cyprus transposition in Law 87(I)/2017, and the CySEC circular set that turns the framework into daily practice.
- Why regulate at all The three purposes of financial regulation — investor protection, market integrity, financial stability.
- Who this is for Every employee of a Cyprus Investment Firm — front and middle office, operations, IT, compliance, risk, and directors.
- The modules and case studies A one-line preview of MiFID history, the rulebook, organisation, conduct, reporting, the casework module and the three case studies.
- Exam & certificate What passing looks like and what CPD you log.
About 25 minutes of study time
M1 From MiFID I to MiFID II, and where Cyprus sits Video · Quiz
In 2004, the European Union decided that its member states’ separate investment-services regimes could no longer live side by side. It gave itself one framework — the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive — and told every member state to translate it into local law.
- The arc ISD 1993 → MiFID I 2007 → MiFID II 2018 → 2024 Review.
- The pyramid Level 1 Directives · Level 2 Delegated Acts · Level 3 ESMA · Level 4 supervision.
- Cyprus fit Law 87(I)/2017, CySEC as competent authority, CIFs as passporting entities.
- What's changing 2024 MiFID II / MiFIR Review, consolidated tape, research unbundling reversal.
About 30 minutes of study time
M2 Law 87(I)/2017 and the CIF obligation stack Video · Quiz
On paper a CIF is authorised under one Cyprus law. In practice its day-to-day compliance obligations flow from eleven separate rulebooks — Level 1 EU Directives, Level 2 Regulations, Level 3 ESMA guidelines, CySEC circulars, and adjacent regimes (PRIIPs, MAR, IFR/IFD, DORA) that sit on top.
- Perimeter Which firm is a CIF, which is not — Article 4 MiFID II + Law 87(I)/2017.
- Stack The eleven-layer obligation stack every CIF sits inside.
- Circulars The CySEC circular set — from C238 through C758.
- Neighbours Where MAR, PRIIPs, IFR/IFD, DORA and MiCA touch a CIF.
About 30 minutes of study time
M3 Organisation, governance and the three lines of defence Video · Quiz
Article 16 of MiFID II is the starting point for how a firm is organised. It says the firm must have effective internal controls, permanent and independent compliance, risk management and (where proportionate) internal audit functions, and clear governance arrangements — before it does anything else.
- Article 16 What the framework article actually requires, line by line.
- Three lines Business · Risk & Compliance · Internal Audit — the operating model.
- Board Fitness and probity, collective suitability, time commitment.
- Remuneration IFR/IFD Class 2 rules · malus and clawback · gender neutrality.
About 30 minutes of study time
M4 Investor protection Video · Quiz
MiFID II reserves its most detailed rules for the point at which a firm meets a client. Client categorisation, suitability, appropriateness, product governance, information disclosure and best execution together form the investor-protection stack — and they are where every retail complaint, every ombudsman file, and every conduct fine in the last decade has started.
- Categorisation Retail · Professional · Eligible Counterparty — and how to opt across.
- Suitability Portfolio management and advice · Article 25(2) · sustainability preferences.
- Appropriateness Every non-advised service · the execution-only exception.
- Product governance Manufacturer + distributor · target market · Article 16(3).
About 30 minutes of study time
M5 Supervision, enforcement and breach reporting Video · Quiz
Modules 1 to 4 set out the rules. This module covers the procedures a CIF follows to meet its ongoing obligations: what it reports to CySEC and when, how transaction reports work, how suspected market abuse is escalated, how complaints are handled, how breaches are reported, and what happens when obligations are not met.
- Ongoing obligations What is reported, when, and by whom.
- Reporting Transaction reports · order records.
- Escalation Complaints · breaches · whistleblowing · suspicious orders.
- Consequences Sanctions · settlement · appeal.
About 30 minutes of study time
M6 A year at a Cyprus investment firm Video · Quiz
This module follows one illustrative firm through five of those moments over a year. Each situation sets out the facts, asks you to make the decisions the firm faced, and then walks through what the rules require and what a good outcome looks like.
- A new client Retail, professional or eligible counterparty?
- A recommendation A retired couple and a structured note.
- A new product The product committee meets.
- A complaint and an offer A breached mandate, and a fund provider’s commission.
About 50 minutes of study time
Case 1 The firm that outgrew itself Case study · Video
Thalassa Markets Ltd grew from four thousand clients to almost forty thousand in eighteen months. Its compliance team, outsourcing contracts and board reporting did not keep up. This case study follows the small, reasonable-looking decisions that left the firm unable to show it was in control, and how it put things right.
- Why this matters Real settlements and the rules from Module 3.
- The growth year Clients, staff and products multiply.
- Handing work out Three outsourcing decisions in one quarter.
- The warning signs Complaints, backlogs and a quiet board.
About 50 minutes of study time
Case 2 The professional upgrade Case study · Video
Retail clients trading CFDs in the EU are protected by leverage limits, margin close-out rules and negative balance protection; professional clients are not. This case study follows an illustrative Cyprus firm whose retention team pushed retail clients into professional status, one ordinary-looking email at a time, and what the firm had to do to put it right.
- The published concern ESMA’s 2019 warning to CFD providers.
- The upgrade campaign A retention team discovers a shortcut.
- One client’s story A teacher becomes a "professional".
- The review Twelve hundred files, one question each.
About 50 minutes of study time
Case 3 The order that came too early Case study · Video
This case study follows an illustrative Cyprus investment firm through two alerts in the same month: a well-timed purchase before a takeover announcement, and a pattern of orders that were placed and cancelled to move a share price.
- The published picture What ESMA’s 2025 report on suspicious reports shows.
- The takeover trade A client buys two days before the news.
- The disappearing orders Large orders that never meant to trade.
- Reporting to CySEC Writing the report, and what happens next.
About 50 minutes of study time
Exam Final Exam · 15 questions · 25 minutes · 80% to pass 15 questions · 12 to pass
About 25 minutes of study time
Your instructor
Learn from an experienced industry practitioner
Instructor of record
Yiannos Ashiotis
- CPA
- CAMS
- CFSA
- MCSI
- CySEC AML-Certified
- CySEC Advanced-Certified
Chair of the Board and Co-Founder of Pnyx Hill. Advises regulated investment firms, credit institutions and asset managers across the EU, Cyprus and the UAE on licensing, governance and conduct-of-business obligations.
Instructor of record means he sets the content, exam and certification standard for every Pnyx Hill Academy course, and the certificate is issued on his authority.
Assessment and certification
A certificate that means something
The final exam pass mark for this course is 80%, rounded up to a whole question: 12 of 15 correct. There is no lower tier and no participation certificate.
The minimum on the final exam, rounded up to a whole question. Module quizzes are practice and are not graded, but each must be worked through to complete its module.
Sat online when you are ready; the timer is 25 minutes. You can retake it at no extra charge.
Issued as a PDF the moment the course completes, with your name and the date.
Every certificate carries a unique ID. Anyone you show it to, such as your employer or a supervisor during an inspection, can check it is genuine at pnyxhill.academy/verify-certificate.
CySEC continuing professional development
Built for your CySEC CPD record
This course is designed as continuing professional development under paragraph 17(2)(a) of the CySEC Certification Directive (R.A.D. 44/2019, as amended), for persons on the CySEC public registers of certified persons.
| Total duration | About 6½ hours of study, excluding breaks, certified as 5 CPD hours |
|---|---|
| Laws covered |
|
| Proof of completion | Every unit must be completed in full, and the course ends with a final exam at 80%. The certificate is issued only on a pass. |
| Trainer | Yiannos Ashiotis, Instructor of record |
Download the CPD evidence pack (PDF) Course outline, laws covered, duration, assessment and trainer profile — what CySEC asks certified persons to keep for five years, alongside the certificate.
CySEC does not approve CPD providers or courses, and Pnyx Hill Academy is not approved by CySEC. Certified persons remain responsible for confirming that a course meets their own CPD requirements. How CySEC CPD works
Who it is for
Built for the desks these rules bind
Everyone who works in a Cyprus Investment Firm, and CySEC Basic and Advanced certificate holders logging their annual CPD hours.
- Front and middle office
- Operations and IT
- Compliance and risk, including second-line reviewers
- New joiners learning the CIF obligation landscape
- Directors and board candidates
No prior study is required.
Questions
Before you enrol
How long will the course take me?
The course carries 5 CPD hours, which is the guided learning time across the videos, the written notes, the module quizzes, the case studies and the exam. It is self-paced, so you can take it in one sitting or over several weeks.
Can I skip ahead through the videos?
No. A unit with video only completes once each video has actually been watched through — dragging the scrubber forward does not count — and each module quiz has to be worked through as well. That is what lets us put CPD hours on the certificate and stand behind them.
Who presents the videos?
Elena, an AI-generated presenter. The lessons are scripted, and the course content written and checked, by the instructor of record, Yiannos Ashiotis. Every video has English captions.
What happens if I fail the exam?
You can sit it again. There is no extra charge and no limit on attempts.
How do I get the certificate?
It is emailed to you as a PDF, attached, within minutes of the course completing. It carries your name, the course title, the 5 CPD hours and the date.
Can my firm enrol a team?
Yes. Choose "Enrol a team", pick the number of learners and name them at checkout. Each learner gets their own login and their own certificate. For more than 50 learners, a dedicated firm branch with completion reporting, or payment by invoice, talk to us.
Enrol in Cyprus Financial Services Regulation: MiFID II and CySEC Rules
€ 175.00 for 5 CPD hours. Final exam pass mark 80%. Certificate when you pass.