Corporate Governance

The business compliance monitoring function is one of the key functions in Fina's governance system. It forms part of the second line of defence in the internal control system and reports directly to the Company's Management Board.

The task of business compliance is to manage the risks arising from non-compliance with national and European legal regulations and the Company's internal rules, and to monitor the risks arising from all business relationships.

The compliance function operates preventively, with the aim of reducing the risk of financial loss and the risk of reputational damage or loss arising from non-compliance with legislation or assumed obligations. In this way, with a view to eliminating or reducing damage, it enables prompt and effective action in the event that non-compliance is identified. This function also plays an important role in the pursuit of the highest standards of business ethics and in strengthening the Company's corporate culture, and it promotes lawfulness, integrity and transparent business conduct. This is intended to create the conditions for highly ethical and responsible business conduct at Fina, to protect the interests of its stakeholders, and to minimise the losses the Company could incur as a result of improper conduct by its employees, stakeholders or third parties.

As an entity required to implement business compliance controls, pursuant to the Decision on the Obligation to Introduce a Business Compliance Monitoring Function in Legal Entities in Majority State Ownership (NN 99/19), Fina has appointed Compliance Officers who act with full independence and autonomy and report directly to the Company's Management Board. The Compliance Officers oversee corporate compliance and are responsible for the continuous assessment of business compliance risk and the coordination of business processes.

The role of the Compliance Officers is to ensure that the Management Board, directors, managers and employees of the Company comply with the rules and procedures of the corporate compliance programme and act in accordance with the rules and regulations of regulatory bodies. The Compliance Officers also ensure that conduct in all organisational units meets the standards of conduct prescribed by Fina's Code of Ethics.

Fina's Compliance Officers have been certified by the certification body PECB as ISO 37301 Lead Implementers.

The ISO 37301 standard guarantees a best-in-class approach to establishing, developing, implementing, evaluating, maintaining and improving an effective compliance management system. By applying this standard, Fina ensures compliance with relevant laws, regulatory requirements, industry codes, organisational standards, good governance standards, generally accepted best practices, its own Code of Ethics, and the expectations of the wider community.

The ISO 37301 standard contributes to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which are based on three key aspects of sustainable living — social, environmental and economic — and which aim to build stronger partnerships among states and stakeholders by 2030.