Editorial Guidelines

PREAMBLE

These Editorial Guidelines explain how Traders Union (IAFT LTD) creates, checks, updates and presents editorial content on https://tradersunion.com (the “Website”), including reviews, rankings, comparisons, methodologies, analysis and news.

The Website is an informational/educational platform and does not provide investment advice, personal recommendations, brokerage/trading platform services, portfolio management or trade execution. Nothing on the Website constitutes personalised advice. Users should conduct independent checks and consider our Risk Disclosure.

These Guidelines should be read together with our Terms of Use, Risk Disclosure, Advertiser & Affiliate Disclosure, Privacy Notice, Cookie Policy, User Reviews Policy and Methodology & Ranking Transparency Disclosure (where available / where published on the Website). For personal data matters, the Privacy Notice prevails.

Contents:

1. Purpose, scope and definitions

2. Editorial independence and separation

3. Commercial transparency and ad labelling

4. Sources, fact-checking and accuracy

5. Rankings, scoring and methodology

6. Avoiding misleading language and inducement

7. Cashback / rebates / rewards wording safeguards

8. Conflicts of interest and staff involvement

9. UGC separation

10. Language, translations and consistency

11. QA, escalation and compliance review

12. Updates and contact

• 1.1

  Purpose. To ensure editorial content is fair, clear and not misleading, transparent and evidence-based, clearly separated from advertising/sponsorship, and does not constitute investment advice/personal recommendations or improper inducement to trade.

• 1.2

  Scope. These Guidelines apply to:

  • • broker/platform/service reviews and editorial company profiles;

  • • rankings/top lists/comparison tables and scoring;

  • • ranking methodology disclosures and data sources;

  • • news, analysis and educational materials;

  • • bonuses/promotions and cashback/rebates/rewards content (where present);

  • • editorial CTAs/wording near commercial links.

• 1.3

  Definitions.

  • • “Editorial content” means content created by our editorial team/experts.

  • • “UGC” means user-generated content (reviews/comments) governed by our User Reviews Policy.

  • • “Advertising/Sponsorship” includes banners, sponsored blocks, paid placements and other commercially influenced placements.

  • • “Affiliate link” means a link through which we may receive compensation/commission (see Advertiser & Affiliate Disclosure).

  • • “Ranking/Scoring” is an informational comparative assessment and not a recommendation.

• 2.1

  Independence. Editorial content is produced independently. Commercial relationships must not result in hidden advertising, distorted facts or omission of material risks.

• 2.2

  Separation. We maintain separation between:

  • • editorial/content,

  • • UGC moderation,

  • • advertising/affiliate operations.

• 2.3

  No partner control. Advertisers/partners/featured companies cannot:

  • • approve editorial wording,

  • • demand removal of lawful criticism,

  • • influence scoring/methodology,

  • • force ranking changes without objective grounds and sources.

• 3.1

  “Near and before the click”. Any advertising/sponsored element and/or affiliate link must be clearly labelled on or immediately adjacent to the relevant element and, where feasible, before a user clicks or otherwise engages, rather than only in the footer.

• 3.2

  Labelling terms. We use clear labels such as: “Advertisement”, “Sponsored”, “Paid placement”, “Affiliate link”.

• 3.3

  Paid placement impact. Where paid placement affects ordering/visibility/highlighting, this is disclosed near the ranking/table and in our methodology disclosure.

• 3.4

  Further details. See Advertiser & Affiliate Disclosure.

• 4.1

  Sources. We aim to rely on official sources, reputable third-party data providers (where used), and our own analysis where applicable.

• 4.2

  Third-party data. Where metrics/estimates are used, they are labelled as “estimated/approximate”, with source/date where possible.

• 4.3

  Currency. Review/ranking pages should show last updated date (and where relevant the first published date).

• 4.4

  Corrections. Verifiable factual errors are corrected; material changes may be marked “Updated”.

• 4.5

  Regulatory status, authorisations and regulator warnings

  (a) Where we state a company’s regulatory status (e.g., “regulated”, “authorised”, “licensed”, “registered”), we aim to rely on primary sources, including official regulator registers and public official documents, and to record a check date (e.g., “Checked on: [date]”).

  (b) We use wording accurately: “authorised/regulated” only where confirmed by the relevant register; “registered” does not necessarily mean “regulated”.

  (c) Where public regulator warnings/alerts exist, we may reflect them neutrally, with date/source, without emotive language and without conclusions beyond the primary source.

• 4.6

  Corrections, errata log and update marks

  (a) We correct verifiable factual inaccuracies (e.g., legal name, domains, licensing/registration references, fees/terms where mis-stated and evidenced).

  (b) Material factual corrections may be marked “Updated” with a date (and, where helpful, a brief note of what changed).

  (c) For high-impact pages (rankings/top lists/high-traffic reviews), we may keep an internal errata log and/or show users the last updated date.

  (d) Correction requests can be submitted to compliance@tradersunion.com (see Complaints Handling Policy) and are reviewed within a reasonable timeframe.

• 5.1

  Not a recommendation. Rankings/scoring are informational, non-personalised and not investment advice or inducement.

• 5.2

  High-level methodology. We publish (or make available) key criteria, limitations/assumptions, sources and visibility factors (including commercial factors where applicable).

• 5.3

  Non-exhaustive. “Best/top” lists are non-exhaustive and reflect a snapshot as of the update date.

• 5.4

  Conflicts. Where affiliate links exist, labelling is mandatory; commercial relationships must not be presented as editorial endorsement.

• 5.5

  Superlatives and comparative claims (“best”, “#1”, “most reliable”)

  (a) We avoid unsubstantiated superlatives and absolute comparisons. Claims such as “best/#1/most reliable” are used only where:

  • • there is an objective, verifiable basis (methodology/source/time period/metric), and

  • • the claim is clearly limited to its context (what is measured, as of what date, within which category).

  (b) Where a robust basis is not available, we use neutral alternatives (e.g., “one of…”, “highly rated by users”, “popular”, “strong on [criterion]”) with appropriate qualifiers and a link to methodology.

  (c) Comparisons must not be misleading and should include key limitations, sources and the date of relevance.

• 6.1

  No guarantees. We avoid/ban claims like “guaranteed profit”, “risk-free”, “stable income”, imperative “you should open an account”, or unsubstantiated “#1/best” claims.

• 6.2

  Risk balance. Where benefits/bonuses/conditions are mentioned, material risks/limitations and a link to Risk Disclosure should be present.

• 6.3

  Forecasts/signals. Where forecasting formats exist, they must be informational, non-personalised, include “no advice” disclaimers and avoid imperatives (“buy now”).

• 6.4

  Editorial CTAs and avoiding inducement (especially near commercial links)

  (a) On pages that include affiliate links/ads/paid placement, editorial wording and CTAs must remain neutral and informational and must not create urgency or pressure.

  (b) Prohibited examples include:

  • • “Open an account now”, “Start trading immediately”, “Don’t miss out”, “Best time to buy/enter”;

  • • “We recommend you…”, “You should choose…”, “This broker is guaranteed to fit”;

  • • wording that frames cashback/rebates as performance: “earn”, “offset losses”, “profit thanks to cashback”.

  (c) Acceptable neutral alternatives include:

  • • “Visit provider website”, “View terms”, “Compare features”, “Check fees and risks”;

  • • “Information is general and not a recommendation”;

  • • “Terms and risks depend on the provider; check before use”.

  (d) Where a CTA appears near a ranking, table, or any mention of bonuses or cashback, it should be accompanied, where applicable, by clear “Advertisement”, “Sponsored”, “Paid placement”, or “Affiliate link” labelling and, where appropriate, by a brief risk reminder with a link to the Risk Disclosure.

• 7.1

  Not performance. Cashback/rebates/rewards are described as third-party marketing conditions, not investment returns.

• 7.2

  Required clarifications near mentions.

  • • third-party programme/provider,

  • • terms may change and restrictions may apply,

  • • withdrawal/eligibility conditions may apply,

  • • no profit guarantee and no risk reduction.

  Cashback/rebates do not reduce trading risk and are not insurance or loss compensation.

• 7.3

  Prohibited wording. No “guaranteed profit via cashback”, “we compensate your losses” (unless strictly true and evidenced), or “trade more to earn more”.

• 7.4

  Safer wording example.

  “Cashback/Rewards is a marketing programme governed by a third party’s terms. It is not investment advice and does not guarantee profits. Trading involves risk; see Risk Disclosure.”

• 8.1

  Conflict disclosure. Material ties are disclosed and authors may be recused where appropriate.

• 8.2

  No paid positivity. We do not accept payment, consideration, or other benefits in exchange for positive editorial outcomes, more favourable wording, or score/ranking changes.

• 8.3

  Company-provided content. Company-provided text via verified accounts is labelled “Company-provided” and separated from editorial content.

• 9.1

  User reviews are authors’ opinions; we do not verify or guarantee every statement contained in user reviews. Where a specific verification label is used, its meaning is explained in the relevant policy or on the relevant page.

• 9.2

  UGC moderation/removal is governed by User Reviews Policy and Moderation & Removal Policy.

• 9.3

  No mixing ads into UGC without clear labelling.

• 10.1

  Translations must preserve meaning, caution and disclaimers.

• 10.2

  Advertising/affiliate terminology is used consistently across languages.

• 11.1

  High-risk pages (rankings/tables/CTAs/bonuses/cashback) undergo compliance checks for transparency and inducement risks.

• 11.2

  Complaints/signals can be sent to compliance@tradersunion.com and handled under the Complaints Handling Policy.

• 12.1

  We may update these Guidelines; the date appears at the top.

• 12.2

  Contact: compliance@tradersunion.com.