Network Commissions

DECLARATION FOR THE RECOGNITION AND PROTECTION OF INTERMEDIARY AND NETWORK COMMISSIONS

Dear Sir or Madam,

In connection with the transaction introduced and/or facilitated by us, we would like to establish, before any further discussions and in particular before the disclosure of direct contact details of the Buyer and Seller, a clear principle regarding the recognition and protection of all Intermediaries involved in the transaction.

Our role as Intermediaries is not limited to simply introducing a Buyer and a Seller who are personally known to us.

International transactions within our network are often created through a multi-level chain of Intermediaries that has been built, developed and maintained over many years.

For example, one Intermediary may know an Intermediary specialized in Gold, another may have access to Bitcoin or digital assets, another may have access to foreign exchange or USD pallets, while another may know a Mandate or Mandater who ultimately has access to the Seller.

On the Buyer side, a similar chain may exist.

The structure may, for example, look like this:

Intermediary → Intermediary → Intermediary → Mandate/Mandater → Seller

and

Intermediary → Intermediary → Mandate/Mandater → Buyer

It is therefore completely normal that certain Intermediaries do not personally know the ultimate Buyer or Seller.

Nevertheless, these Intermediaries may be essential to the transaction. Without their contacts, relationships, knowledge and network, the connection between Buyer and Seller may never have been established.

1. Recognition of the Network Contribution

The development of an international Intermediary network takes many years and is generally built and maintained without any advance compensation.

Intermediaries invest their time, contacts, experience and personal resources in developing and maintaining these relationships.

The economic value of this long-term contribution becomes particularly apparent when the network is activated for a specific transaction and enables the different parties to be connected.

This contribution should therefore be recognized as an integral part of the overall intermediary service and not merely as an isolated introduction.

2. Intermediaries Who Do Not Personally Know the Buyer or Seller

It is expressly acknowledged that an Intermediary within the transaction chain may not personally know the ultimate Buyer or Seller.

Likewise, an Intermediary may not be clearly attributable exclusively to either the Buyer Side or the Seller Side.

This does not mean that such Intermediary has no right to the agreed commission.

An Intermediary may have made a decisive contribution simply by providing or establishing a key connection within its network, thereby enabling the subsequent connection between the relevant parties.

3. Side-Neutral / Network Intermediaries

We refer to such persons or entities as “Side-Neutral Intermediaries” or “Network Intermediaries.”

These are persons or entities that perform an essential connecting function within the intermediary chain but cannot be clearly attributed exclusively to the Buyer Side or Seller Side.

Such Intermediaries are expressly considered part of the protected intermediary chain.

Their agreed commission shall therefore not be rejected on the grounds that they:

do not personally know the Buyer;
do not personally know the Seller;
do not communicate directly with the Buyer or Seller;
are not part of the Buyer Side;
are not part of the Seller Side; or
merely connected one Intermediary with another Intermediary.

4. Recognition by Buyer and Seller

By entering into the transaction, the Buyer and Seller acknowledge that the transaction may be established through several successive Intermediaries.

The Buyer and Seller therefore acknowledge and accept the entire protected intermediary chain and agree that the agreed commission shall be distributed among the participating and protected Intermediaries in accordance with the agreed Commission Schedule.

Personal acquaintance between an individual Intermediary and the ultimate Buyer or Seller is not a prerequisite for commission entitlement.

5. Non-Circumvention

No Buyer, Seller, Mandate, Mandater, Representative or other party involved in the transaction shall attempt to circumvent any member of the intermediary chain or reduce or avoid the agreed commission by subsequently excluding individual Intermediaries from the transaction.

In particular, the following arguments shall not constitute grounds for excluding a protected Intermediary:

“I do not know this Intermediary.”

“This Intermediary is not on my side.”

“This Intermediary did not introduce the Buyer or Seller directly to me.”

If such Intermediary is part of the protected intermediary chain and contributed through contacts, relationships, information or intermediary services to the origination or facilitation of the transaction, the agreed commission entitlement remains valid.

6. Commission Agreement Before the Transaction

The complete commission structure shall be established in writing before the transaction is executed.

For this purpose, a separate Commission Schedule, IMFPA, Fee Protection Agreement or equivalent commission agreement may be used.

Such document may specify the total commission as well as the respective shares of Buyer-Side, Seller-Side and Side-Neutral / Network Intermediaries.

Once the commission structure has been acknowledged and agreed in writing, it shall not be unilaterally reduced, altered or disregarded.

7. Confidentiality of the Intermediary Chain

For reasons of confidentiality, security and protection of the intermediary network, it is not necessarily required that every member of the intermediary chain be disclosed by name to the Buyer or Seller.

The complete commission distribution may instead be deposited with and administered by an agreed Paymaster or other designated party responsible for commission distribution.

What is essential is that the participation of the relevant Intermediaries is recognized before completion of the transaction and that their agreed commissions are irrevocably taken into account.

8. Fundamental Principle

We would like to make clear that we do not expect Buyers or Sellers to pay persons who have made no contribution whatsoever to a transaction.

Our position relates exclusively to those Intermediaries who are genuinely part of the transaction chain and whose contacts, network, information, introduction or intermediary services were necessary to originate, facilitate or enable the transaction.

We consider it fair and commercially reasonable that these persons receive appropriate compensation for their contribution.

Without the networks built over many years, the relationships established between the various Intermediaries and the mutual trust developed within these networks, many international transactions would never reach the stage where a Buyer and Seller can be connected.

9. Confirmation Before Direct Contact

We therefore request that, before direct contact is established and before direct contact details are disclosed, the Buyer and Seller confirm that they:

acknowledge the existence of a multi-level intermediary chain;
recognize Side-Neutral / Network Intermediaries as legitimate members of that chain;
respect the agreed commission structure;
undertake not to circumvent any Intermediary involved in the protected chain; and
ensure that the agreed commissions are paid upon successful completion of the transaction in accordance with the applicable Commission Schedule.

This declaration is intended to protect all parties and to establish complete transparency from the beginning regarding the recognition of intermediary services and the commissions arising from such services.

The connection between a Buyer and a Seller does not simply appear by itself. It is often the result of a network of people who have spent years building, maintaining and connecting business relationships. Each essential link in that chain deserves recognition and fair compensation.

Kind regards,