Whistle Blowing FAQs

Whistleblowing is the act of drawing attention to a perceived wrongdoing, misconduct, or unethical activity within FAB Group.

A whistleblower is someone who discloses or attempts to disclose information about a wrongdoing which could come in various forms such as workplace, fraud, corruption, violation of company policy, law, regulation, etc.

Whistleblowing can be reported by anyone within FAB or by anyone from outside FAB that are or have been associated with the bank in one form or another.

FAB encourages various types of misconduct  or wrongdoing to be reported, some examples are:

• Workplace misconduct – any matters related to Human Resources and Environment Health and Safety.
• Fraud including financial related misconduct – theft, abuse of assets and other general/financial related fraud matters
• Bribery/Corruption misconduct- corrupt practices including giving or receiving bribes or other improper benefits
• Regulatory and business misconduct – compliance issues, conflict of interests and other regulatory violations
• Data and Security misconduct – information security, data privacy and other cyber security related matters.

Whistleblowing relates to any perceived misconduct or unethical activity that is performed by an individual that adversely impacts FAB. Such misconduct can be reported in an independent manner and is treated with utmost anonymity and confidentiality.

Complaints generally relate to service issues or related customer service matters and enquiries relate togeneral information or asking about a particular product offered by FAB. Complaints and general enquiries should be reported through the appropriate channels on the FAB website: https://www.bankfab.com/en-ae/contact-us

Whistleblowing incidents can be reported using various secure and protected channels managed by an independent third party vendor that includes:

• Designated telephone hotlines by country (available in different languages) – See listed hotline numbers under the Channels section.
• Email at FABListens@ethix360.com
• Web portal via the URL link: FABListens.ipm.ae.starcompliance.com. You may submit a report in various languages by first clicking on the world icon on the top right corner of the main page before ticking the “Report a concern” icon.
• Texting via Whatsapp on +1 (704) 771-0476
• Writing via letter (available in English and Arabic) – The letter can be mailed to “StarCompliance” or to one of our FAB locations as applicable.Refer to the listed mailing addresses under the Channels section.

All the reporting options allow for the Whistleblower to remain completely confidential and anonymous. There may be times when FAB personnel will need to try to determine the Whistleblower’s identity or contact details in order to conduct an investigation. In such cases, the reason will be communicated. As long as any Whistleblowing reports are made in good faith, the Whistleblower will be protected from retaliation.

There is information that needs to be provided by the Whistleblower to help initiate an investigation that includes at a minimum:

• Type of incident
• Brief details of incident – i.e. time, place, occurrence, activity, involved individuals, etc.
• Triggers of the incident
• Any evidence to help support the intended allegations
• Any other relevant information that could help provide further clarity to successfully proceed with the investigation.

The Whistleblower may be contacted for further information that may be needed during the investigation.

When you report an incident via any of the channels, a unique case number will be assigned. The case number is assigned automatically when a report is made via the telephone hotline or via the online web portal. A PIN is also created along with the assigned case number that consists of numeric characters. In case of online reporting, the individual filing a report should generate their own PIN composed of numbers. In the case of email and WhatsApp, a case number and PIN are assigned and communicated to the reporter once the case is reviewed and logged into the CaseTrac system. In the case of a letter, only those individuals who provide contact information will receive a case and PIN numbers. You should retain the case and PIN numbers so you can check on the status and receive updates as applicable.

No, but it is important to file a report as soon as you have enough evidence to make a good faith report. If you delay, evidence becomes stale, hampering the investigation where FAB may not be able to resolve the problem effectively.

A preliminary enquiry will be conducted to determine if a full investigation should be undertaken and by whom. Moreover, as part of the enquiry, you may be contacted for further information.

The preliminary enquiry assesses whether or not there appears to be a proper incident reported. If so, the case will be investigated. If we believe the incident does not meet the Whistleblowing criteria or is more related to a complaint, we will direct the case to the proper channels for further review and resolution.

You can provide as much factual information and evidence as possible in order to allow the investigation to proceed. You should be prepared to be contacted by the related FAB personnel and provide the required information you know about the allegations to proceed with the investigation. Moreover, evidences or supporting documents may not be obtained for which you do not have a right or privilege of access.

You generally have the right to be informed of the outcome of your disclosure and the findings of any investigation. However, any action taken against an employee as a consequence of the investigation may be personal and confidential, in which case, it cannot be disclosed.

Consult Regulatory Compliance via the designated email whistleblowingenquiries@bankfab.com or your local compliance officer or Whistleblowing Champion where applicable.