Brussels, 13/11/2003 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission initiated a new consultation procedure on the measures needed to implement the 'Prospectus' Directive. Adopted in July by the Parliament and Council, this Directive will permit companies to produce a single information document valid throughout the EU, during a stock market floatation and initial public offering. The working document released by the Commission details the system for implementation, according to the so-called 'Lamfalussy' procedure.
In particular it specifies: 1) the minimum disclosure requirement to be included in the various prospectuses (Article 7 of the Directive): equity securities, different types and nature of offers and admission to trading of non-equity securities, the format used and the information required for non-equity securities, the size or the public nature of the issuer; 2) the possibility of producing a single document or three separate documents (Article 5); 3) the method for the publication of information, while taking into account Community legislation on company law and the enforcement of international accounting standards (Article 10); 4) integration into the prospectus of simple references to documents already approved by the home competent authority (Article 11); 5) methods for making documents available to the public (Article 14); 6) the conditions to be respected for communications materials of a promotional nature: content, presentation and information quality.
The consultation process will be followed by an official proposal, after the publication of the latest opinion from the Committee of European Securities Regulators expected on 31 December (a schedule for certain collective investment undertakings of the closed-end type, financial information requirements for non-EU issuers and for companies asking for a first admission to trading of their securities on a regulated market and finally, advertising). (The Commission document may be found on its website: http: //europa.eu.int/comm/internal_market/fr/finances/mobil/prospectus_fr.htm).