Directive 2001/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 May 2001 on the admission of securities to official stock exchange listing and on information to be published on those securities TABLE OF CONTENTS RECITALSTITLE I: DEFINITIONS AND SCOPE OF APPLICATIONChapter I: DefinitionsArticle 1Chapter II: Scope of applicationArticle 2Article 3Article 4TITLE II: GENERAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE OFFICIAL LISTING OF SECURITIESChapter I: General conditions for admissionArticle 5Article 6Article 7Chapter II: More stringent or additional conditions and obligationsArticle 8Chapter III: DerogationsArticle 9Article 10Chapter IV: Powers of the national competent authoritiesSection 1: Decision of admissionArticle 11Article 12Article 13Article 14Article 15Section 2: Information requested by the competent authoritiesArticle 16Section 3: Actions against an issuer failing to comply to the obligations resulting from admissionArticle 17Section 4: Suspension and discontinuanceArticle 18Section 5: Right to apply to the courts in case of refusal of admission or discontinuanceArticle 19TITLE III: PARTICULAR CONDITIONS RELATING TO OFFICIAL LISTING OF SECURITIESChapter I: Publication of listing particulars for admissionSection 1: General provisionsArticle 20Article 21Article 22Section 2: Partial or complete exemption from the obligation to publish listing particularsArticle 23Section 3: Permitted omission from the listing particulars of certain informationArticle 24Section 4: Contents of the listing of particulars in certain specific casesArticle 25Article 26Article 27Article 28Article 29Article 30Article 31Article 32Article 33Article 34Section 5: Control and circulation of listing particularsArticle 35Article 36Section 6: Determination of the competent authorityArticle 37Section 7: Mutual recognitionArticle 38Article 39Article 40Section 8: Negotiations with non-member countriesArticle 41Chapter II: Particular conditions for the admission of sharesSection 1: Conditions relating to companies for the shares of which admission to official listing is soughtArticle 42Article 43Article 44Section 2: Conditions relating to the shares for which admission is soughtArticle 45Article 46Article 47Article 48Article 49Article 50Article 51Chapter III: Particular conditions relating to the admission to the official listing of debt securities issued by an undertakingSection 1: Conditions relating to undertakings for the debt securities of which admission to official listing is soughtArticle 52Section 2: Conditions relating to the debt securities for which admission to official listing is soughtArticle 53Article 54Article 55Article 56Article 57Section 3: Other conditionsArticle 58Article 59Chapter IV: Particular conditions relating to the admission to official listing of debt securities issued by a State, its regional or local authorities or a public international bodyArticle 60Article 61Article 62Article 63TITLE IV: ONGOING OBLIGATIONS RELATING TO SECURITIES ADMITTED TO OFFICIAL LISTINGChapter I: Obligations of companies whose shares are admitted to official listingSection 1: Listing of newly issued shares of the same classArticle 64Section 2: Treatment of shareholdersArticle 65Section 3: Amendment of the instrument of incorporation or the statutesArticle 66Section 4: Annual accounts and annual reportArticle 67Section 5: Additional informationArticle 68Section 6: Equivalence of informationArticle 69Section 7: Periodical information to be publishedArticle 70Article 71Section 8: Publication and contents of the half-yearly reportArticle 72Article 73Article 74Article 75Article 76Article 77Chapter II: Obligation of issuers whose debt securities are admitted to official listingSection 1: Debt securities issued by an undertakingArticle 78Article 79Article 80Article 81Article 82Section 2: Debt securities issued by a State or its regional or local authorities or by a public international bodyArticle 83Article 84Chapter III: Obligations relating to the information to be published when a major holding in a listed company is acquired or disposed ofSection 1: General provisionsArticle 85Article 86Article 87Article 88Section 2: Information when a major holding is acquired or disposed ofArticle 89Article 90Article 91Section 3: Determination of the voting rightsArticle 92Section 4: ExemptionsArticle 93Article 94Article 95Section 5: Competent authoritiesArticle 96Section 6: SanctionsArticle 97TITLE V: PUBLICATION AND COMMUNICATION OF THE INFORMATIONChapter I: Publication and communication of listing particulars for the admission of securities to the official stock exchange listingSection 1: Procedures and period of publication of listing particulars and their supplementsArticle 98Article 99Article 100Section 2: Prior communication to the competent authorities of the means of publicationArticle 101Chapter II: Publication and communication of information after listingArticle 102Chapter III: LanguagesArticle 103Article 104TITLE VI: COMPETENT AUTHORITIES AND COOPERATION BETWEEN MEMBER STATESArticle 105Article 106Article 107TITLE VII: CONTACT COMMITTEEChapter 1: Composition, working and tasks of the CommitteeArticle 108Chapter II: Adaptation of the amount of equity market capitalisationArticle 109TITLE VIII: FINAL PROVISIONSArticle 110Article 111Article 112Article 113Annex I — Schedule of listing particulars for the admission of securities to the official stock exchange listingAnnex II — Part A: Repealed Directives and their successive amendmentsAnnex II — Part B: Deadlines for transposition into national lawAnnex III — Correlation table (c. 34)

TITLE II U.K. GENERAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE OFFICIAL LISTING OF SECURITIES

CHAPTER I U.K. General conditions for admission

Article 5 U.K.

Member States shall ensure that:

(a)

securities may not be admitted to official listing on any stock exchange situated or operating within their territory unless the conditions laid down by this Directive are satisfied, and

(b)

that issuers of securities admitted to such official listing, regardless of the date on which this admission takes place, are subject to the obligations provided for by this Directive.

Article 6 U.K.

1. The admission of securities to official listing shall be subject to the conditions set out in Articles 42 to 51, or 52 to 63, relating to shares and debt securities respectively.

F1 2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

3. Certificates representing shares may be admitted to official listing only if the issuer of the shares represented fulfils the conditions set out in Articles 42 to 44 and the obligations set out in Articles 64 to 69 and if the certificates fulfil the conditions set out in Articles 45 to 50.

Textual Amendments

F1 Deleted by Directive 2004/109/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 2004 on the harmonisation of transparency requirements in relation to information about issuers whose securities are admitted to trading on a regulated market and amending Directive 2001/34/EC.

Article 7 U.K.

Member States may not make the admission to official listing of securities issued by companies or other legal persons which are nationals of another Member State subject to the condition that the securities must already have been admitted to official listing on a stock exchange situated or operating in one of the Member States.

CHAPTER II U.K. More stringent or additional conditions and obligations

Article 8 U.K.

1. Subject to the prohibitions provided for in Article 7 and in Articles 42 to 63, the Member States may make the admission of securities to official listing subject to more stringent conditions than those set out in Articles 42 to 63 or to additional conditions, provided that these more stringent and additional conditions apply generally for all issuers or for individual classes of issuer and that they have been published before application for admission of such securities is made.

[F2 2. Member States may make the issuers of securities admitted to official listing subject to additional obligations, provided that those additional obligations apply generally for all issuers or for individual classes of issuers.]

3. Member States may, under the same conditions as those laid down in Article 9, authorise derogations from the additional or more stringent conditions and obligations referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 hereof.

4. Member States may, in accordance with the applicable national rules require issuers of securities admitted to official listing to inform the public on a regular basis of their financial position and the general course of their business.

Textual Amendments

F2 Substituted by Directive 2004/109/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 2004 on the harmonisation of transparency requirements in relation to information about issuers whose securities are admitted to trading on a regulated market and amending Directive 2001/34/EC.

CHAPTER III U.K. Derogations

Article 9 U.K.

Any derogations from the conditions for the admission of securities to official listing which may be authorised in accordance with Articles 42 to 63 must apply generally for all issuers where the circumstances justifying them are similar.

Article 10 U.K.

Member States may decide not to apply the conditions set out in Articles 52 to 63 and the obligations set out in Article 81(1) and (3) in respect of applications for admission to official listing of debt securities issued by companies and other legal persons which are nationals of a Member State and which are set up by, governed by or managed pursuant to a special law where repayments and interest payments in respect of those securities are guaranteed by a Member State or one of its federal states.

CHAPTER IV U.K. Powers of the national competent authorities

Section 1 U.K. Decision of admission

Article 11 U.K.

1. The competent authorities referred to in Article 105 shall decide on the admission of securities to official listing on a stock exchange situated or operating within their territories.

2. Without prejudice to the other powers conferred upon them, the competent authorities may reject an application for the admission of a security to official listing if, in their opinion, the issuer's situation is such that admission would be detrimental to investors' interests.

Article 12 U.K.

By way of derogation from Article 8, Member States may, solely in the interests of protecting the investors, give the competent authorities power to make the admission of a security to official listing subject to any special condition which the competent authorities consider appropriate and of which they have explicitly informed the applicant.

Article 13 U.K.

1. Where applications are to be made simultaneously or within short intervals of one another for admission of the same securities to official listing on stock exchanges situated or operating in more than one Member State, or where an application for admission is made in respect of a security already listed on a stock exchange in another Member State, the competent authorities shall communicate with each other and make such arrangements as may be necessary to expedite the procedure and simplify as far as possible the formalities and any additional conditions required for admission of the security concerned.

2. In order to facilitate the work of the competent authorities, any application for the admission of a security to official listing on a stock exchange situated or operating in a Member State must state whether a similar application is being or has been made in another Member State, or will be made in the near future.

Article 14 U.K.

The competent authorities may refuse to admit to official listing a security already officially listed in another Member State where the issuer fails to comply with the obligations resulting from admission in that Member State.

Article 15 U.K.

Where an application for admission to official listing relates to certificates representing shares, the application shall be considered only if the competent authorities are of the opinion that the issuer of the certificates is offering adequate safeguards for the protection of investors.

Section 2 U.K. Information requested by the competent authorities

Article 16 U.K.

1. An issuer whose securities are admitted to official listing shall provide the competent authorities with all the information which the latter consider appropriate in order to protect investors or ensure the smooth operation of the market.

2. Where protection of investors or the smooth operation of the market so requires, an issuer may be required by the competent authorities to publish such information in such a form and within such time limits as they consider appropriate. Should the issuer fail to comply with such requirement, the competent authorities may themselves publish such information after having heard the issuer.

Section 3 U.K. Action against an issuer failing to comply with the obligations resulting from admission

Article 17 U.K.

Without prejudice to any other action or penalties which they may contemplate in the event of failure on the part of the issuer to comply with the obligations resulting from admission to official listing, the competent authorities may make public the fact that an issuer is failing to comply with those obligations.

Section 4 U.K. Suspension and discontinuance

Article 18 U.K.

1. The competent authorities may decide to suspend the listing of a security where the smooth operation of the market is, or may be, temporarily jeopardised or where protection of investors so requires.

2. The competent authorities may decide that the listing of the security be discontinued where they are satisfied that, owing to special circumstances, normal regular dealings in a security are no longer possible.

Section 5 U.K. Right to apply to the courts in case of refusal of admission or discontinuance

Article 19 U.K.

1. Member States shall ensure decisions of the competent authorities refusing the admission of a security to official listing or discontinuing such a listing shall be subject to the right to apply to the courts.

2. An applicant shall be notified of a decision regarding his application for admission to official listing within six months of receipt of the application or, should the competent authority require any further information within that period, within six months of the applicant's supplying such information.

3. Failure to give a decision within the time limit specified in paragraph 2 shall be deemed a rejection of the application. Such rejection shall give rise to the right to apply to the courts provided for in paragraph 1.