It’s time to say goodbye. Long-term CySEC Chairwoman Demetra Kalogerou already vanished from the regulator’s website. George Theocharides, the current Vice-Chairman, is expected to succeed Demetra Kalogerou as Chairman. Theocharides’ appointment was arranged already a year ago. He agreed to serve first as a Vice-Chairman for 14 months alongside Kalogerou, whose term ends on September 14 after serving two terms. Demetra Kalogerou was appointed in 2011. Theocharides, 49, will become the second academic to take the helm at CySEC. The first was Marios Clerides, Financial Mirror reports.
We have been able to observe Demetra’s last years very closely. Under her CySEC leadership, Limassol has become the European headquarters of the Israeli financial scene. CySEC has made it easy for Israeli-controlled investment houses and brokers. In fact, CySEC has failed as a Regulator under the leadership of Demetra Kalogerou. Cyprus has become a wide-open gateway into the EU for illegal financial activities and scammers. Along with the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), CySEC is one of the worst regulators in the EU.
Sure, CySEC has repeatedly issued penalties or “settlement” payments with the regulated financial firms and thus replenished the budget of the Ministry of Finance but has not taken any real measures to fight financial cybercrime. On the contrary, over the last 10 years, Cyprus and CySEC sort of institutionalized cyber financial crime by not properly supervising their regulated financial institutions. Other regulators such as Consob, CNMV, or FCA have had to continuously take action against CySEC-regulated investment firms for using fraudulent measures to attack their own citizens in their respective regulatory regimes.
No, the era of Demetra Kalogerou will not be remembered fondly. Time will tell if the new chairman can reboot CySEC.
