Related provisions for RCB 2.1.1
1 - 20 of 62 items.
The issuer must send to the FCA annual written confirmation of compliance with Regulations 16 (sums derived from the issue of regulated covered bonds) and 17 (general requirements on the issuer in relation to the asset pool) of the RCB Regulations in the form set out in RCB 3 Annex 1D (annual confirmation of compliance).
(1) The first confirmation date in relation to the annual confirmation must be the earlier of any date the issuer selects, or the date 12 months from the registration date.(2) Subsequent confirmations must be made:2(a) on the anniversary of the first confirmation date, or2(b) on a later date, where agreed by the FCA before that date.2
1Where possible, the director or senior manager who signs the annual confirmation should be the same director or senior manager who has verified the application for registration under RCB 2.2.6 D. If the director or senior manager is different to the director or senior manager who verified the application for registration, the issuer should notify the FCA at least one month before sending the confirmation to the FCA.
1In addition to requiring the asset pool monitor to prepare an annual report, Regulation 17A of the RCB Regulations requires that the asset pool monitor must inspect the compliance of the issuer or owner (as the case may be) with the requirements in Regulations 16, 17 or 24 of the RCB Regulations once every 12 months.
1The FCA expects the inspection by the asset pool monitor of the compliance of the issuer or owner (as the case may be) with the relevant requirements in the RCB Regulations to address at least the matters to be checked and due diligence procedures set out in RCB 2.3.18 G. The FCA expects that the inspection will be conducted on an agreed-upon-procedures basis.
1As required under Regulation 17A of the RCB Regulations, if it appears to the asset pool monitor that the issuer or owner (as the case may be) has failed to comply with the requirements set out in Regulations 17 or 24 of the RCB Regulations, or has not provided all relevant information or explanations, the asset pool monitor must report that to the FCA in writing as soon as possible.
(1) An issuer of shares must ensure equal treatment for all holders of shares who are in the same position. [Note: article 17(1) of the TD](2) An issuer of debt securities must ensure that all holders of debt securities ranking pari passu are given equal treatment in respect of all the rights attaching to those debt securities. [Note: article 18(1) of the TD]
(1) Shareholders and debt securities holders must not be prevented from exercising their rights by proxy, subject to the law of the country in which the issuer is incorporated. [Note: articles 17(2) and 18(2) of the TD](2) An issuer of shares or debt securities must make available a proxy form, on paper or, where applicable, by electronic means to each person entitled to vote at a meeting of shareholders or a meeting of debt securities holders. [Note: articles 17(2)(b) and 18(2)(b)
To use electronic means to convey information to holders, an issuer must comply with the following:(1) a decision to use electronic means to convey information to shareholders or debt securities holders must be taken in a general meeting;(2) the use of electronic means must not depend upon the location of the seat or residence of:(a) the shareholder; or(b) persons referred to in rows (a) to (h) of the table set out in DTR 5.2.1 R; or(c) the debt security holder; or(d) a proxy
An issuer of securities other than shares admitted to trading on a regulated market must disclose to the public without delay any changes in the rights of holders of securities other than shares, including changes in the terms and conditions of such securities which could indirectly affect those rights, resulting in particular from a change in loan terms or in interest rates.[Note article 16(2) of the TD]
An issuer of debt securities must publish notices or distribute circulars concerning:(1) the place, time and agenda of meetings of debt securities holders; (2) the payment of interest;(3) the exercise of any conversion, exchange, subscription or cancellation rights and repayment; and(4) the rights of holders to exercise their rights in relation to paragraphs (1) – (3).[Note: article 18(2)(a) of the TD]
An issuer whose registered office is in a third country4 is exempted from DTR 6.1.3 R to DTR 6.1.15 R if:33(1) the law of the third country4 in question lays down equivalent requirements; or3(2) the issuer complies with requirements of the law of a third country4 that the FCA considers as equivalent.3[Note: article 23(1) of the TD]3
The FCA maintains a published list of third countries4, for the purpose of DTR 6.1.16R4, whose laws3 lay down requirements equivalent to those imposed upon issuers by this chapter, or where the requirements of the law of that third country4 are considered to be equivalent by the FCA3. Such issuers remain subject to the following requirements of DTR 6:3(1) the filing of information with the FCA;(2) the language provisions; and(3) the dissemination of information provisions.
To enable the FCA to be satisfied that the issuer and the proposed owner will comply with requirements imposed on the issuer or owner, as the case may be, by or under the RCB Regulations, the applicant should use the application form to provide relevant details of the proposed covered bond or programme and demonstrate how each of the requirements will be complied with.
(1) The FCA's application form covers both issuer registration and covered bond registration as the FCA will not normally consider applications for issuer registration in isolation from the application for registration of the covered bond.(2) An issuer which has been admitted to the register of issuers should use the same form to apply for registration of subsequent covered bonds or programmes.(3) The issuer does not need to apply for registration of individual issuances from
In relation to registration of an issuer of regulated covered bonds, the FCA will need to be satisfied that the issuer's compliance with the requirements of the regulatory system has been adequate and does not give rise to any material cause for concern over the issuer's ability to issue regulated covered bonds in compliance with the RCB Regulations.
To demonstrate that the issuer and the proposed owner will comply with Regulation 17, and Regulations 23 and 24 of the RCB Regulations (capability of the asset pool to cover claims), the issuer should set out what it considers to be the risks of the regulation not being complied with and show how those risks have been adequately mitigated by reference to the tests and provisions set out in the covered bond or programme documentation.
Regulations 17(2)(d) (requirements on issuer relating to the asset pool) and 23(2) (requirements on owner relating to the asset pool) require the issuer of a regulated covered bond and the owner of the relevant asset pool to make arrangements so that the asset pool is of sufficient quality to give investors confidence that in the event of the failure of the issuer there will be a low risk of default in the timely payment by the owner of claims attaching to a regulated covered
The FCA will:(1) expect the issuer to demonstrate that it has in place appropriate systems, controls, procedures and policies, including in relation to risk management, underwriting, arrears and valuation; (2) expect the issuer to demonstrate that the cash-flows generated by the assets would be sufficient to meet the payments due in a timely manner including under conditions of economic stress and in the event of the failure of the issuer;(3) take account of any over collateralisation
The risk factors which the FCA will take into account in assessing the issuer's and owner's compliance with Regulations 17(2)(d) (general requirements on issuer in relation to the asset pool) and 23(2) (requirements on owner relating to the asset pool) will include credit risk of the assets, concentration risk, market risk and counterparty risk.
Counterparty risk is the risk that the counterparty to a transaction could default before the final settlement of the transactions cash flows. The relevant factors the FCA may consider include whether the:(1) counterparty has an appropriate credit rating;(2) counterparty can unilaterally terminate the hedging agreement, and if so under what circumstances;(3) contractual arrangements contain appropriate termination procedures (for example, what provisions apply in the event of
(1) The FCA will assess each risk factor separately and then assess any inter-dependencies and correlations to form a judgment on the quality of the asset pool as a whole. For example, an asset pool which is of high credit quality and so low risk due to a combination of factors such as owner occupation, low income multiples, full valuation methodologies, and a strong payments track record, may permit another factor such as high loan-to-value ratios, that would otherwise be considered
The FCA expects the issuer to demonstrate that there are provisions in the covered bond or programme that adequately deal with:(1) the identification and rectification of any breach of Regulations 17(2) (general requirements on issuer in relation to the asset pool) and 24 (requirements on owner relating to the asset pool) of the RCB Regulations;(2) the appointment of replacements for parties, for example servicers, cash managers or paying agents; and(3) the orderly winding-up
The FCA expects the issuer to demonstrate, as part of showing that Regulations 17 (general requirements on issuer in relation to the asset pool) and 24 (requirements on owner relating to the asset pool) of the RCB Regulations will be complied with, that there are provisions in the covered bond or programme which enable the views and interests of investors in the regulated covered bond to be taken account of in an appropriate and timely way by a suitably qualified, adequately resourced,
(1) The FCA expects legal advice to deal adequately with at least the following matters in relation to the actual or proposed arrangements:(a) whether the transfer of the assets to the owner would be upheld in the event of liquidation or administration, or similar collective insolvency proceedings, of the issuer or the transferor (if different from the issuer);(b) the risk of the transfer of an asset to the owner being re-characterised as the creation of a security interest;(c)
(1) The FCA expects the report from the accountants to address at least the following matters:(a) that the level of over collateralisation meets the limits set out in the covered bond arrangements which are designed to ensure compliance with the requirement that the asset pool is capable of covering claims attaching to the bond in Regulation 17 (requirements on issuer in relation to the asset pool) of the RCB Regulations; and(b) that appropriate due diligence procedures (which
1Assets which would be eligible for inclusion in a liquidity buffer under BIPRU 12.7 as it applied on 31 December 2021 4can be liquid assets for the purposes of limb (a) of the definition of liquid assets in Regulation 1(2) of the RCB Regulations. The FCA will also expect that liquid assets which consist of deposits should be held in the same currency or currencies as the regulated covered bonds issued by the issuer.
(1) If an issuer is required to prepare consolidated accounts6,the audited financial statements must comprise:(a) consolidated accounts prepared in accordance with UK-adopted IFRS6, and(b) accounts of the parent company prepared in accordance with the law of the United Kingdom6.[Note: article 4(3) of the TD](2) If an issuer is not required to prepare consolidated accounts, the audited financial statements must comprise accounts prepared in accordance with the law of the United
(1) The6 financial statements must be audited in accordance with Part 16 of the Companies Act 20066.(2) [deleted]6(3) The audit report, signed by the person or persons responsible for auditing the financial statements must be disclosed in full to the public together with the annual financial report.[Note: article 4(4) of the TD](4) An issuer which is a UK-traded third country company6 within the meaning of section 1241 of the Companies Act 2006 must ensure that the person who
The review required by DTR 4.1.8 R must:(1) be a balanced and comprehensive analysis of:(a) the development and performance of the issuer's business during the financial year; and(b) the position of the issuer's business at the end of that year,consistent with the size and complexity of the business;(2) include, to the extent necessary for an understanding of the development, performance or position of the issuer's business:(a) analysis using financial key performance indicators;
The management report required by DTR 4.1.8 R must also give an indication of:(1) any important events that have occurred since the end of the financial year unless those events are:4(a) 4reflected in the issuer’s profit and loss account or balance sheet; or(b) 4disclosed in the notes to the issuer’s audited financial statements;(2) the issuer's likely future development;(3) activities in the field of research and development;(4) the information concerning acquisitions of own
(1) Responsibility statements must be made by the persons responsible within the issuer.(2) The name and function of any person who makes a responsibility statement must be clearly indicated in the responsibility statement.(3) For each person making a responsibility statement, the statement must set out that to the best of his or her knowledge:(a) the financial statements, prepared in accordance with the applicable set of accounting standards, give a true and fair view of the
An issuer to which this section applies must include a corporate governance statement in its directors’ report. That statement must be included as a specific section of the directors’ report and must contain at least the information set out in DTR 7.2.2 R to DTR 7.2.7 R and, where applicable, DTR 7.2.8AR and6DTR 7.2.10 R.
The corporate governance statement must contain a reference to the following, where applicable4: (1) the corporate governance code to which the issuer is subject; 4(2) the corporate governance code which the issuer may have voluntarily decided to apply; and4(3) all relevant information about the corporate governance practices applied over and above 4the requirements of 4national law. [Note: article 20(1)(a) first paragraph of the Accounting Directive4]
(1) An issuer which is complying with DTR 7.2.2 R (1) or DTR 7.2.2 R (2) must:(a) state in its directors’ report where the relevant corporate governance code is publicly available; and(b) where 4it departs from that corporate governance code, explain which parts of the corporate governance code it departs from and the reasons for doing so.(2) Where DTR 7.2.2 R (3) applies, the issuer must make details of 4its corporate governance practices publicly available and state in its directors’
The corporate governance statement must contain the information required by paragraph 13(2)(c), (d), (f), (h) and (i) of Schedule 7 to the Large and Medium-sized Companies and Groups (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 (SI 2008/410) (information about share capital8) where the issuer is subject to the requirements of that paragraph.[Note: article 20(1)(d) of the Accounting Directive4]
(1) 5The corporate governance statement must contain a description of:(a) the diversity policy applied to the issuer’s administrative, management and supervisory bodies and the remuneration, audit and nomination committees of those bodies9 with regard to aspects such as, for instance, age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability9 or educational9, professional and socio-economic9 backgrounds;(b) the objectives of the diversity policy in (a); (c) how the diversity policy
An issuer may elect that, instead of including its corporate governance statement in its directors’ report, the information required by DTR 7.2.1 R to DTR 7.2.8AR6 may be set out in4: (1) 4a separate report published together with and in the same manner as its annual report4; or(2) a4 document publicly available on the issuer's website to which reference is made in the directors’ report4. 44Under (1) or (2), the corporate governance statement must contain the information required
Subject to DTR 7.2.11 R, an issuer which is required to prepare a group directors’ report within the meaning of section 415(2) of the Companies Act 2006 must include in that report a description of the main features of the group’s internal control and risk management systems in relation to the financial reporting process for the undertakings included in the consolidation, taken as a whole4. In the event that the issuer presents its own annual report and its consolidated annual
(1) 4An issuer that elects to include its corporate governance statement in a separate report as permitted by DTR 7.2.9R(1) must provide the information required by DTR 7.2.10R in that report.(2) 4An issuer that elects to include its corporate governance statement in a document publicly available on the issuer's website to which reference is made in the directors’ report as permitted by DTR 7.2.9R(2) must provide the information required by DTR 7.2.10R in that document.
If an issuer proposes to make a material change to the contractual terms of a regulated covered bond, it must inform the FCA of the following information to the FCA at least 3 months before the proposed date of the change:(1) details of the proposed change including proposed date of change and the reasons for it;(2) an assessment of the impact of the change on the ability of the issuer and owner to continue to comply with their requirements under the RCB Regulations and RCB; and
The issuer or the owner, as the case may be, must notify the FCA immediately in writing by e-mail, or hand-delivered letter, if requirements relating to the relevant regulated covered bond under the RCB Regulations or RCB are, or are likely to be, materially breached, or of any other matter which the FCA should be made aware of.
(1) 1The transaction documents published under RCB 3.5.13 D should include the asset sale agreement, the servicing agreements, the administration and cash management agreements, the trust deed, the security deed, the agency agreements, the account bank agreement, the guaranteed investment contract, the master definitions agreement, intercompany loan agreements, the LLP deed, the asset monitor agreement, the swap documentation, the final terms of the regulated covered bonds or
3Where an issuer or person is required to file regulated information under DTR 6.2.2R, the issuer or person must have a legal entity identifier (LEI) (where eligible) with an ‘issued’ registration status on the GLEIF Global LEI Index and, when the issuer or person files regulated information under DTR 6.2.2R, they must6 notify the following to the FCA:(1) the name and LEI of the issuer concerned;6(2) [deleted]6(3) 6the name and LEI (where eligible) of the person required to file
This section applies to:(1) an issuer whose transferable securities are admitted to trading; and6[Note: article 21(1) of the TD](2) a person who has applied, without the issuer's consent, for the admission of its transferable securities to trading on a regulated market.6[Note: article 21(1) of the TD](3) [deleted]6
(1) When disseminating regulated information an issuer or other person must ensure that the minimum standards contained in DTR 6.3.4 R to DTR 6.3.8 R are met.(2) An issuer or person must entrust a RIS with the disclosure of regulated information to the public and must ensure that the RIS complies with the minimum standards contained in DTR 6.3.4 R to DTR 6.3.8 R.[Note: article 12(1) of the TD implementing directive]11
Regulated information must be communicated to the media in a manner which ensures the security of the communication, minimises the risk of data corruption and unauthorised access, and provides certainty as to the source of the regulated information. Security of receipt must be ensured by remedying as soon as possible any failure or disruption in the communication of regulated information. An issuer or person is not responsible for systemic errors or shortcomings at the media to
Regulated information must be communicated to a RIS in a way which:(1) makes clear that the information is regulated information;(2) identifies clearly: (a) the issuer concerned;(b) the subject matter of the regulated information; 8(c) the time and date of the communication of the regulated information by the issuer or the person;8(d) 8the legal entity identifier (LEI) of the issuer concerned;(e) 8the name and LEI (where eligible) of any person who has applied, without the issuer’s
Upon request, an issuer or other person must be able to communicate to the FCA, in relation to any disclosure of regulated information:(1) the name of the person who communicated the regulated information to the RIS;(2) the security validation details;(3) the time and date on which the regulated information was communicated to the RIS;(4) the medium in which the regulated information was communicated; and(5) details of any embargo placed by the issuer on the regulated information,
An issuer must, at the end of each calendar month during which an increase or decrease has occurred, disclose to the public:(1) the total number of voting rights and capital in respect of each class of share which it issues.[Note: article 15 of the TD]; and(2) the total number of voting rights attaching to shares of the issuer which are held by it in treasury.
(1) 1Notwithstanding DTR 5.6.1 R, if a relevant increase or decrease in the total number of voting rights of the kind described in (2) occurs, an issuer must disclose to the public the information in DTR 5.6.1R (1) and (2) as soon as possible and in any event no later than the end of the business day following the day on which the increase or decrease occurs.(2) For the purpose of (1), a relevant increase or decrease is any increase or decrease in the total number of voting rights
1The issuer must send to the FCA loan-by-loan level data relating to the asset pool in the form set out in RCB 3 Annex 7A D within one month of the end of each quarter following any issuance of regulated covered bonds after 1 January 2013. Guidance on how to complete this form is set out in RCB 3 Annex 7B G.
1If the issuer or the owner (as the case may be) proposes to add or remove assets to or from the asset pool which change the level of over collateralisation by 5% or more, it must notify the FCA using the form set out in RCB 3 Annex 2 D (asset notification form) at least 5 business days prior to the proposed transfer, giving expected details of the size and composition of the transfer.
(1) An issuer must make public a half-yearly financial report covering the first six months of the financial year.(2) The half-yearly financial report must be made public as soon as possible, but no later than three1 months, after the end of the period to which the report relates.(3) An issuer must ensure that the half-yearly financial report remains available to the public for at least ten1 years.[Note: article 5(1) of the TD]
(1) If an issuer is required to prepare consolidated accounts, the condensed set of financial statements must be prepared in accordance with IAS 34 as contained in UK-adopted IFRS3.[Note: article 5(3) of the TD](2) If an issuer is not required to prepare consolidated accounts, the condensed set of financial statements must contain, as a minimum the following:(a) a condensed balance sheet;(b) a condensed profit and loss account; and(c) explanatory notes on these accounts.[Note:
(1) This rule applies to an issuer that is not required to prepare consolidated accounts.(2) In preparing the condensed balance sheet and the condensed profit and loss account an issuer must follow the same principles for recognising and measuring as when preparing annual financial reports.[Note: article 5(3) of the TD](3) The balance sheet and the profit and loss account must show each of the headings and subtotals included in the most recent annual financial statements of the
(1) In addition to the requirement set out in DTR 4.2.7 R, an issuer of shares must disclose in the interim management report the following information, as a minimum:(a) related parties transactions that have taken place in the first six months of the current financial year and that have materially affected the financial position or the performance of the enterprise during that period; and(b) any changes in the related parties transactions described in the last annual report that
(1) If the half-yearly financial report has been audited or reviewed by auditors pursuant to the Financial Reporting Council 2guidance on Review of Interim Financial Information, the audit report or review report must be reproduced in full.(2) If the half-yearly financial report has not been audited or reviewed by auditors pursuant to the Financial Reporting Council 2guidance on Review of Interim Financial Information, an issuer must make a statement to this effect in its report.[Note:
(1) Responsibility statements must be made by the persons responsible within the issuer. [Note: article 5(2)(c) of the TD](2) The name and function of any person who makes a responsibility statement must be clearly indicated in the responsibility statement.[Note: article 5(2)(c) of the TD](3) For each person making a responsibility statement, the statement must confirm that to the best of his or her knowledge:(a) the condensed set of financial statements, which has been prepared
DTR 7.1 does not apply to:(1) any issuer which
is a subsidiary undertaking of
a parent undertaking where the parent undertaking is subject to:3(a) DTR 7.16; and3(b) articles 11(1), 11(2) and 16(5) of the Audit Regulation;3[Note: article 39(3)(a)3 of the Audit Directive](2) any issuer the sole
business of which is to act as the issuer of asset-backed
securities provided the entity makes a statement available to
the public setting out the reasons for which it considers it is not
5DTR 7.2.8AR does not apply to an issuer which: (1) qualifies as a small company under sections 382 to 383 of the Companies Act 2006; or(2) qualifies as a medium company under sections 465 to 466 of the Companies Act 2006,in relation to the financial year to which the corporate governance statement relates. [Note: article 20(5) of the Accounting Directive]
5DTR 7.2.8AR does not apply to a listed company which:(1) is required to comply with DTR 7.2 as if it were an issuer by UKLR 6.6.18R, UKLR 13.3.24R, UKLR 14.3.21R, UKLR 15.3.1R(3), UKLR 16.3.20R or UKLR 22.2.21R10; and (2) would meet the criteria in DTR 1B.1.7R if it were a company incorporated in the United Kingdom.
The rules on annual financial reports in DTR 4.1 (including DTR 4.1.7R (4)1 and3 half-yearly financial reports (DTR 4.2) do not apply to an issuer that issues exclusively debt securitiesadmitted to trading the denomination per unit of which is at least 100,000 euros2 (or an equivalent amount).[Note: article 8(1)(b) of the TD and article 45(1) of the Audit Directive]11332
The rules on half-yearly financial reports do not apply to an issuer already existing on 31 December 2003 which exclusively issue debt securities unconditionally and irrevocably guaranteed by the United Kingdom6 or by a regional or local authority of United Kingdom6, on a regulated market.[Note: article 8(3) of the TD]
4An issuer whose registered office is in a third country6 is exempted from the rules on:5(1) annual financial reports in DTR 4.1 (other than DTR 4.1.7R (4) which continues to apply); (2) half-yearly financial reports (DTR 4.2); and(3) reports on payments to governments (DTR 4.3A);5if the law of the third country6 in question lays down equivalent requirements or the issuer complies with requirements of the law of a third country6 that the FCA considers as equivalent.5[Note: article
The FCA maintains a published list of third countries6,5 for the purpose of DTR 4.4.8R6, whose laws5 lay down requirements equivalent to those imposed upon issuers by this chapter, or where the requirements of the law of that third country6 are considered to be equivalent by the FCA5.Such issuers remain subject to the following requirements of DTR 6:(1) the filing of information with the FCA;(2) the language provisions; and(3) the dissemination of information provisions.
(1) 4A majority of the members of the relevant body must be independent.(2) At least one member of the relevant body must have competence in accounting or auditing, or both.(3) The members of the relevant body as a whole must have competence relevant to the sector in which the issuer is operating.[Note: article 39(1) of the Audit Directive]
An issuer must ensure that, as a minimum, the relevant body must:(1) monitor the financial reporting process and submit recommendations or proposals to ensure its integrity4;(2) monitor the effectiveness of the issuer’s internal quality control4 and risk management systems and, where applicable, its internal audit, regarding the financial reporting of the issuer, without breaching its independence4; (3) monitor the statutory audit of the annual and consolidated financial statements,
(1) [Note: article 7(4) of the Market Abuse Regulation]1(2) In determining whether information
would be likely to have a significant effect on the price of financial instruments, an issuer should
be mindful that there is no figure (percentage change or otherwise) that can
be set for any issuer when determining
what constitutes a significant effect on the price of the financial
instruments as this will vary from issuer to issuer.
An issuer may wish to take account of the following factors when considering whether the information in question would be likely to be used by a reasonable investor as part of the basis of his investment decisions:1(1) 1the significance
of the information in question will vary widely from issuer to issuer, depending on a variety of factors
such as the issuer's size, recent
developments and the market sentiment about the issuer and
the sector in which it operates; and(2) the likelihood1
It is not possible to prescribe
how the reasonable investor test will apply in all possible situations. Any
assessment may need to1 take into consideration the anticipated impact of the information
in light of the totality of the issuer's activities,
the reliability of the source of the information and other market variables
likely to affect the relevant financial instrument in
the given circumstances. However, information which is likely to be considered
relevant to a reasonable
An issuer and
its advisers are best placed to make an initial assessment of whether particular
information amounts to inside information.
The decision as to whether a piece of information is inside
information may be finely balanced and the issuer (with
the help of its advisers) will need to exercise its judgement.Note:DTR 2.7 provides additional guidance
on dealing with market rumour.
(1) [deleted]1(2) If an issuer is
faced with an unexpected and significant event, a short delay may be acceptable
if it is necessary to clarify the situation. In such situations a holding
announcement should be used where an issuer believes
that there is a danger of inside information leaking
before the facts and their impact can be confirmed. The holding announcement
should:(a) detail as much of the subject matter
as possible;(b) set out the reasons why a fuller
announcement
The FCA is aware that many issuers provide unpublished information to
third parties such as analysts, employees, credit rating agencies, finance
providers and major shareholders, often in response to queries from such parties.
The fact that information is unpublished does not in itself make it inside information. However, unpublished
information which amounts to inside information is
only permitted to be disclosed in accordance with the requirements of the Market Abuse Regula
In this section references to an “issuer active in the extractive or logging of primary forest industries” are to an issuer which is:3(1) a mining or quarrying undertaking3; or(2) a logging undertaking3.In this section “mining or quarrying undertaking”, “logging undertaking”, “payment” and “government” have the meanings given in regulation 2 of the Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/3209). 3
An issuer is considered to be active in the extractive or logging of primary forest industries if any of its subsidiary undertakings are:(1) a mining or quarrying undertaking3; or(2) a logging undertaking3.In this section3 “subsidiary undertaking” has the meaning given in regulation 2 of the Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/3209). [Note: article 44(1) of the Accounting Directive]
(1) 2The issuer must file the report on payments to governments with the FCA.(2) The report in (1) must be filed by uploading it to the national storage mechanism4.(3) A report filed under (2) must be in XML (extensible markup language) format and must use the XML data schema developed for the purposes of facilitating software filing to be used for the purpose of delivering a report on payments to governments dated 1 August 2016 and comprising: (a) the Extractive Report Schema
The issuer must ensure that a director or a1senior manager of the issuer verifies the application by confirming on the FCA's form that the issuer has obtained the appropriate third party advice or reports as required by RCB 2.3.16 D and is satisfied that:(1) the information provided in the application is correct and complete; and (2) the arrangements relating to the covered bond or programme will comply with the requirements in the RCB Regulations and in RCB.
3Issuers should be aware that ESMA has issued guidelines under article 17(11) of the Market Abuse Regulation which contain a non-exhaustive indicative list of the legitimate interests of issuers to delay disclosure of inside information and situations in which delayed disclosure is likely to mislead the public: see the ESMA MAR delayed disclosure guidelines4.
(1) Delaying disclosure of inside information will not always mislead
the public, although a developing situation should be monitored so that if
circumstances change an immediate disclosure can be made.(2) Investors understand that some
information must be kept confidential until developments are at a stage when
an announcement can be made without prejudicing the legitimate interests of
the issuer.
(1) In the FCA’s opinion, paragraph 5(1)(8)(a) of the ESMA MAR delayed disclosure guidelines does3 not envisage that an issuer will: 2(a) delay public disclosure of the fact that it is in financial difficulty or of its worsening financial condition and is limited to the fact or substance of the negotiations to deal with such a situation; or2(b) delay disclosure of inside information on the basis that its position in subsequent negotiations to deal with the situation will be jeopardised
An issuer should
not be obliged to disclose impending developments that could be jeopardised
by premature disclosure. Whether or not an issuer has
a legitimate interest which would be prejudiced by the disclosure of certain inside information is an assessment which
must be made by the issuer in
the first instance. 321
(1) [deleted]2(2) Selective2 disclosure cannot be made to any person simply
because they owe the issuer a
duty of confidentiality. An issuer may, however, depending on the circumstances, be justified in disclosing inside information to certain categories of recipient (in addition to those employees of the issuer who require the information to perform their functions) as long as the recipients are bound by a duty of confidentiality. 5For example, an issuer contemplating
a major
(1) The FCA may, at any time, require an issuer to publish such information in such form and within such time limits as it considers appropriate to protect investors or to ensure the smooth operation of the market.(2) If an issuer fails to comply with a requirement under paragraph (1) the FCA may itself publish the information (after giving the issuer an opportunity to make representations as to why it should not be published).
If an issuer is required to notify information to a RIS at a time when a RIS is not open for business, it must distribute the information as soon as possible to:(1) not less than two national newspapers in the United Kingdom;(2) two newswire services operating in the United Kingdom; and(3) a RIS for release as soon as it opens.