EU Proposal to extend the Prospectus Directive exemption to all Employee Share Plans - Sep 2009

www.pinsentmasons.com/PDF/ProspectusDirective.pdf

 
EU Proposal to extend the Prospectus Directive exemption to all Employee Share Plans.

 
In a recent Press Release, the European Commission has put forward various proposals to simplify the application and increase the efficiency of the Prospectus Directive.  This is good news for AIM-listed companies and other companies not fully listed, as once the proposals are adopted, they should be able to rely on the same exemption for employee share plans as is currently available to fully listed companies.

Use above link for full text.

New proposals
The European Commission has recognised that the cost of producing a prospectus may not be justified in the case of employee share plans, where concerns about investor protection are not the same as for full public offers.  It is therefore proposed that the exemption for employee share plans will extend to all companies, not just those listed on regulated markets. 

To qualify for the exemption from preparing a full prospectus, a company will need to produce an information document, setting out the type and number of securities being offered, together with reasons for and details of the offer.

The proposal will have to be adopted by the European Parliament and EU Council, and will not therefore be implemented until at least 2010.