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TITLE VPRINCIPLES AND TECHNICAL INSTRUMENTS FOR PRUDENTIAL SUPERVISION AND DISCLOSURE

CHAPTER 1 Principles of prudential supervision

Section 3 Duty of persons responsible for the legal control of annual and consolidated accounts

Article 53

1.Member States shall provide at least that any person authorised within the meaning of Directive 84/253/EEC(1) performing in a credit institution the task described in Article 51 of Directive 78/660/EEC, Article 37 of Directive 83/349/EEC or Article 31 of Directive 85/611/EEC(2), or any other statutory task, shall have a duty to report promptly to the competent authorities any fact or decision concerning that credit institution of which he has become aware while carrying out that task which is liable to:

(a)constitute a material breach of the laws, regulations or administrative provisions which lay down the conditions governing authorisation or which specifically govern pursuit of the activities of credit institutions;

(b)affect the continuous functioning of the credit institution; or

(c)lead to refusal to certify the accounts or to the expression of reservations.

Member States shall provide at least that that person shall likewise have a duty to report any fact or decision of which he becomes aware in the course of carrying out a task as described in the first sub-paragraph in an undertaking having close links resulting from a control relationship with the credit institution within which he is carrying out that task.

2.The disclosure in good faith to the competent authorities, by persons authorised within the meaning of Directive 84/253/EEC, of any fact or decision referred to in paragraph 1 shall not constitute a breach of any restriction on disclosure of information imposed by contract or by any legislative, regulatory or administrative provision and shall not involve such persons in liability of any kind.

(1)

Eighth Council Directive 84/253/EEC of 10 April 1984 on the approval of persons responsible for carrying out the statutory audits of accounting documents (OJ L 126, 12.5.1984, p. 20).

(2)

Council Directive 85/611/EEC of 20 December 1985 on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) (OJ L 375, 31.12.1985, p. 3). Directive as last amended by Directive 2005/1/EC.