(Article 19(1) of Directive 2004/39/EC)

1. Member States shall require investment firms, when providing the service of portfolio management, to comply with the obligation under Article 19(1) of Directive 2004/39/EC to act in accordance with the best interests of their clients when placing orders with other entities for execution that result from decisions by the investment firm to deal in financial instruments on behalf of its client.

2. Member States shall require investment firms, when providing the service of reception and transmission of orders, to comply with the obligation under Article 19(1) of Directive 2004/39/EC to act in accordance with the best interests of their clients when transmitting client orders to other entities for execution.

3. Member States shall ensure that, in order to comply with paragraphs 1 or 2, investment firms take the actions mentioned in paragraphs 4 to 6.

4. Investment firms shall take all reasonable steps to obtain the best possible result for their clients taking into account the factors referred to in Article 21(1) of Directive 2004/39/EC. The relative importance of these factors shall be determined by reference to the criteria set out in Article 44(1) and, for retail clients, to the requirement under Article 44(3).