1. Investment firms, when providing portfolio management, shall comply with the obligation under rule 2.1.1. of the Conduct of Business sourcebook 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. Investment firms, when providing the service of reception and transmission of orders, shall comply with the obligation under rule 2.1.1. of the Conduct of Business sourcebook to act in accordance with the best interests of their clients when transmitting client orders to other entities for execution.

3. In order to comply with paragraphs 1 or 2, investment firms shall comply with paragraphs 4 to 7 of this Article and Article 64(4).

4. Investment firms shall take all sufficient steps to obtain the best possible result for their clients taking into account the factors referred to in rule 11.2A.2 of the Conduct of Business sourcebook. The relative importance of these factors shall be determined by reference to the criteria set out in Article 64(1) and, for retail clients, to the requirement under rule 11.2A.2 of the Conduct of Business sourcebook.

An investment firm satisfies its obligations under paragraph 1 or 2, and is not required to take the steps mentioned in this paragraph, to the extent that it follows specific instructions from its client when placing an order with, or transmitting an order to, another entity for execution.