RESOLUTION CMN NO. 4,860, OF OCTOBER 23, 2020

Establishes the constitution and functioning of an ombudsman organizational component by financial institutions and other institutions authorized to operate by the Central Bank of Brazil. (Amended, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

The Central Bank of Brazil, in accordance with Article 9 of Law No. 4,595, of December 31, 1964, makes public that the National Monetary Council, in a session held on October 22, 2020, based on Article 4, item VIII, of said Law,

RESOLVES:

CHAPTER I

ON THE OBJECT AND SCOPE OF APPLICATION

Art. 1. This Resolution regulates the constitution and functioning of an ombudsman organizational component by the institutions it specifies.

Sole Paragraph. The provisions of this Resolution do not apply to consortium administrators, payment institutions, securities brokerage firms, securities distribution firms, and foreign exchange brokerage firms, which must observe the regulation issued by the Central Bank of Brazil in the exercise of their legal duties. (Added, effective as of March 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,117, of January 25, 2024.)

Art. 2. The ombudsman organizational component must be established by financial institutions and other institutions authorized to operate by the Central Bank of Brazil that have natural person clients, including individual entrepreneurs, or legal entities classified as microenterprises and small-sized businesses, in accordance with Complementary Law No. 123, of December 14, 2006. (Amended, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

Sole Paragraph. Commercial banks under corporate control of stock exchanges, commodity and futures exchanges, or stock and commodity and futures exchanges that perform exclusively functions as central clearinghouse and custodian, providing services to the exchanges and to the economic agents responsible for the operations conducted therein, are exempt from establishing an ombudsman. (Amended, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

CHAPTER II

ON THE PURPOSE

Art. 3. The ombudsman has the following purposes:

I - to serve as the final instance for addressing demands from clients and users of products and services that have not been resolved through the institution's primary service channels; and

II - to act as a communication channel between the institution and the clients and users of products and services, including in conflict mediation.

Sole Paragraph. For the purposes of this Resolution, primary service is considered the habitual service provided at any points or channels of service, including correspondent offices in the country and the Consumer Service (SAC) referred to in Decree No. 6,523, of July 31, 2008.

CHAPTER III

ON ORGANIZATION

Art. 4. The structure of the ombudsman must be compatible with the nature and complexity of the products, services, activities, processes, and systems of each institution.

Sole Paragraph. The ombudsman cannot be linked to an organizational component of the institution that constitutes a conflict of interest or duties, such as units responsible for negotiating products and services, risk management, internal audit, and compliance.

Art. 5. Sharing of the ombudsman among institutions is permitted, observing the following situations and rules:

I - an institution part of a conglomerate composed of at least two institutions authorized to operate by the Central Bank of Brazil may share the ombudsman established in any of the authorized institutions;

II - an institution not covered by item I of the caput may share the ombudsman established:

a) in an affiliated company, according to the definition in § 1º; or

b) in the trade association to which it belongs or in the stock exchange, commodity and futures exchange, or stock and commodity and futures exchange in which it conducts operations;

III - a single credit cooperative affiliated with a central credit cooperative may share the ombudsman established in the respective central cooperative, in the confederation of credit cooperatives, or in a bank of the cooperative system to which it belongs; and (Amended, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

IV - a single credit cooperative not affiliated with a central credit cooperative may share the ombudsman established in a central cooperative, in a federation of credit cooperatives, in a confederation constituted by central credit cooperatives, or in a trade association of the category. (Amended, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

§ 1º For the purpose of item II, letter "a", of the caput, institutions authorized to operate by the Central Bank of Brazil and companies not authorized to operate by the Central Bank of Brazil are considered affiliated if:

I - one participates with 10% (ten percent) or more of the capital of the other, directly or indirectly; and

II - shareholders with 10% (ten percent) or more of the capital of one participate with 10% (ten percent) or more of the capital of the other, directly or indirectly.

§ 2º The provision of item II, letter "b", of the caput does not apply to commercial banks, multiple banks, savings banks, credit, financing, and investment companies, savings and loan associations, and leasing companies that conduct financial leasing operations.

§ 3º The provisions of items II, letter "b", and IV, of the caput apply only to trade associations or exchanges that possess an effectively implemented code of ethics or self-regulation, to which the institution has adhered.

CHAPTER IV

ON FUNCTIONING

Art. 6. The duties of the ombudsman include the following activities:

I - to receive, register, process, analyze, and provide formal and adequate handling to demands from clients and users of products and services;

II - to provide clarifications to requesters regarding the progress of demands, informing the expected response time;

III - to send a conclusive response to the demand within the stipulated time; and

IV - to keep the board of directors, or, in its absence, the executive management of the institution, informed about problems and deficiencies detected in the fulfillment of its duties and about the results of measures adopted by administrators to resolve them.

§ 1º The service provided by the ombudsman:

I - must be identified by a protocol number, which must be provided to the requester;

II - must be recorded when conducted by telephone, and when conducted via written document or electronic means, the respective documentation must be archived; and

III - may cover:

a) exceptionally, demands not initially received by primary service channels; and

b) demands forwarded by the Central Bank of Brazil, by public bodies, or by other public or private entities.

§ 2º The response time for demands cannot exceed ten business days, and may be extended, exceptionally and with justification, once for an equal period, limited to 10% (ten percent) of the total number of demands in the month, and the requester must be informed about the reasons for the extension.

Art. 7. The institutions referred to in Art. 2 must:

I - maintain information and control systems for demands received by the ombudsman, in order to:

a) register the history of services, the information used in analysis, and the measures taken; and

b) control the response time;

II - provide wide publicity regarding the existence of the ombudsman, its purpose, its duties, and access methods, including in the communication channels used to disseminate products and services;

III - guarantee free access for clients and users to ombudsman service, through agile and effective channels, including by telephone, whose number must be:

a) published and kept updated in a visible location to the public within its premises and those of correspondent offices in the country, as well as on their respective websites on the internet, accessible from the home page;

b) included in statements, receipts, including electronic ones, contracts, advertising and promotional materials, and other documents intended for clients and users; and

c) inserted and permanently kept updated in the Central Bank of Brazil's information registration system.

Sole Paragraph. Information related to demands received by the ombudsman must remain registered in the system mentioned in item I for a minimum period of five years, counted from the date of protocolization of the occurrence.

CHAPTER V

FORMAL REQUIREMENTS

Art. 8. The bylaws or articles of incorporation, depending on the legal nature of the society, must expressly provide for the following aspects:

I - the purpose, duties, and activities of the ombudsman;

II - the criteria for designation and removal of the ombudsman;

III - the duration of the ombudsman's term, fixed in months; and

IV - a formal commitment to:

a) create adequate conditions for the functioning of the ombudsman, as well as for its performance to be guided by transparency, independence, impartiality, and fairness; and

b) ensure the ombudsman's access to the information necessary to prepare adequate responses to received demands, with full administrative support, being able to request information and documents for the exercise of its activities in fulfilling its duties.

§ 1º The aspects mentioned in the caput must be included in the bylaws or articles of incorporation in the first amendment that occurs after the establishment of the ombudsman.

§ 2º Statutory or contractual amendments required by this Resolution relative to institutions opting for the option provided in Art. 5, items I and III, can only be promoted by the institution that establishes the ombudsman.

§ 3º Institutions that do not establish their own ombudsman due to the option provided in Art. 5, items II and IV, must ratify the decision at the first general assembly or the first board meeting held after such decision.

Art. 9. The institutions referred to in Art. 2 must designate to the Central Bank of Brazil the names of the ombudsman and the director responsible for the ombudsman.

§ 1º The director responsible for the ombudsman may perform other functions in the institution, including that of ombudsman, except for the role of director of third-party resources administration.

§ 2º In the cases of commercial banks, multiple banks, savings banks, credit, financing, and investment companies, savings and loan associations, and leasing companies that conduct financial leasing operations, which are subject to the obligation to constitute an audit committee, as per regulation, the ombudsman cannot perform another function, except that of director responsible for the ombudsman.

§ 3º In situations where the ombudsman performs another activity in the institution, that activity cannot constitute a conflict of interest or duties.

Art. 10. In the cases provided for in Art. 5, items I, III, and IV, the ombudsman must:

I - be responsible for all institutions that share the ombudsman; and

II - be part of the staff of the institution that establishes the ombudsman.

Art. 11. For compliance with the caput of Art. 9, in the cases provided for in Art. 5, item II, the institutions referred to in Art. 2 must:

I - designate to the Central Bank of Brazil only the name of the respective director responsible for the ombudsman; and

II - inform the name of the ombudsman, which must be that of the ombudsman of the trade association, stock exchange, commodity and futures exchange, or stock and commodity and futures exchange, or of the entity or company that establishes the ombudsman.

CHAPTER VI

PROVISION OF INFORMATION

Art. 12. The director responsible for the ombudsman must prepare a semi-annual quantitative and qualitative report regarding the activities developed by the ombudsman, with base dates of June 30 and December 31.

Sole Paragraph. The report referred to in the caput must be sent to internal audit, the audit committee, when constituted, and to the board of directors or, in its absence, to the executive management of the institution.

Art. 13. The institutions referred to in Art. 2 must publish semi-annually on their respective websites information regarding the activities developed by the ombudsman, including data related to the direct assessment of service quality referred to in Art. 16.

Art. 14. The Central Bank of Brazil may establish the content, format, frequency, and deadline for sending data and information related to ombudsman activities.

CHAPTER VII

CERTIFICATION

Art. 15. The institutions referred to in Art. 2 must take measures so that members of the ombudsman who perform the activities mentioned in Art. 6 are considered qualified in a certification exam organized by an entity of recognized technical capacity.

§ 1º The certification exam must cover, at a minimum, topics related to ethics, consumer rights, and conflict mediation.

§ 2º The designation of members of the ombudsman referred to in the caput is conditioned upon proof of qualification in the certification exam, in addition to compliance with other requirements of this Resolution.

§ 3º The institutions referred to in the caput must ensure permanent training of ombudsman members regarding the topics mentioned in § 1º.

§ 4º The director responsible for the ombudsman is subject to the formality provided in the caput, if exercising the function of ombudsman.

§ 5º In the cases provided for in Art. 5, items II and IV, the provisions of this article apply to members of the ombudsman of the trade association, entity, or company that performs the activities mentioned in Art. 6.

CHAPTER VIII

DIRECT ASSESSMENT OF SERVICE QUALITY

Art. 16. The institutions referred to in Art. 2 must implement an instrument for direct assessment of the quality of service provided by the ombudsman to clients and users.

Sole Paragraph. The provision of the caput applies only to commercial banks, multiple banks, investment banks, savings banks, and credit, financing, and investment companies.

Art. 17. The direct assessment of service quality referred to in Art. 16 must be:

I - structured to obtain scores between 1 and 5, with 1 being the lowest level of satisfaction and 5 being the highest level of satisfaction;

II - made available to the client or user within one business day after the forwarding of the conclusive response referred to in Art. 6, item III, and § 2º; and

III - completed within five business days after the period referred to in item II.

Art. 18. Data related to the assessment mentioned in Art. 16 must be stored electronically, in chronological order, remaining available to the Central Bank of Brazil for a period of five years, counted from the date of the assessment performed by the client or user. (Amended, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

I - (Revoked, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

II - (Revoked, effective as of November 1, 2024, by CMN Resolution No. 5,182, of October 31, 2024.)

CHAPTER IX

FINAL PROVISIONS

Art. 19. The report and documentation related to services performed, referred to in Arts. 6, § 1º, 7, and 12, as well as telephone recordings of service, must remain available to the Central Bank of Brazil for a minimum period of five years.

Art. 20. The phone number for free access to the ombudsman and data related to the director responsible for the ombudsman and the ombudsman must be inserted and permanently kept updated in the Central Bank of Brazil's information registration system.

Sole Paragraph. The provision of the caput must be observed, including by the institution that does not establish its own ombudsman component due to the option provided in Art. 5.

Art. 21. The Central Bank of Brazil may adopt the necessary measures for the execution of the provisions of this Resolution.

Art. 22. The following are revoked:

I - Resolution No. 4,433, of July 23, 2015; and

II - Resolution No. 4,629, of January 25, 2018.

Art. 23. This Resolution enters into force on December 1, 2020.

Roberto de Oliveira Campos Neto
President of the Central Bank of Brazil