The Moldovan Parliament passed in the second reading the draft law on the interpretation of several articles of the Law on Activity of Banks, relating to the ownership of bank shares.
In particular, the matter concerns the interpretation of Articles 45-49, 51 of the Law on the activities of banks. The legislative initiative is aimed at correct and uniform application of provisions of respective articles of the law. The bill regulates the notions of "purchase", "acquisition", and "receipt" of bank shares, regulating, in particular, the rights of shareholders associated with the existing shares. The proposed rules are aimed at ensuring transparent and prudent management of banks and reliable functioning of the banking sector in the interests of bank customers and the country's economy. The approved draft law provides that, within the meaning of Articles 45-49, 51 of the Law on Activity of Banks, as amended, the interpretation of the wordings concerning the acquisition or receipt of holdings in the capital of a bank also covers situations when the shareholders of a bank decide to exercise their rights related to the already owned holdings in a coordinated manner so as to form a substantial holding in the share capital of the bank or a holding which corresponds or exceeds 5%, 10%, 20%, 33% or 50% or the ratio of their voting rights exercisable in a coordinated manner in the bank's capital equals or exceeds 1%, 5%, 10%, 20%, 33% or 50% of the bank's capital, or so that the bank becomes a subsidiary of theirs. This law shall also apply to situations related to acquisition/receipt, increase of holdings, including through concerted actions with regard to holdings already present in the bank capital, through any transaction or legal action, which are implemented or are in the process of implementation as of the date this law comes into effect. The bill was developed by the MPs of the Action and Solidarity parliamentary faction Olesea Stamate and Radu Marian in consultation with the National Bank. According to the NBM representatives, the regulator supports this draft law, which aims at increasing the transparency of the banking system and at bringing clarity and certainty in the application of the legislation. // 07.07.2023 – InfoMarket
