The German Private Commercial Banks' Statutory Deposit Guarantee And
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Entschädigungseinrichtung deutscher Banken GmbH (EdB) the german private commercial banks’ statutory deposit guarantee and investor compensation scheme* A Brief Guide and List of Member Banks Berlin, April 2014 * Please note: The present English translation is furnished for information purposes only. The original German text is binding in all respects. Entschädigungseinrichtung Since the Deposit Guarantee and Investor Compensation Act (Einlagensicherungs- und Anlegerentschädigungsgesetz) came into force in Germany, deposits and liabilities arising from securities transactions have been protected at the private commercial banks and private building and loan associations to the extent provided for under this Act by the Entschädigungseinrichtung deutscher Banken GmbH (EdB) Burgstrasse 28 10178 Berlin www.edb-banken.de on top of any other guarantee schemes that may exist. The EdB was entrusted by the Federal Finance Ministry with the task of running the statutory deposit guarantee and investor compensation scheme for the private commercial banks in Germany. It thus operates as a sovereign body managing a federal government special fund. The EdB is subject to supervision by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesan- stalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht [BaFin]). CLAIM TO COMPENSATION All private individuals as well as partnerships and small corporations are entitled to com- pensation. Not protected are deposits of banks and financial services institutions, insurance enterprises and medium-sized and large corporations or deposits of public authorities (see in this connection Section 3 of the appended extract from the Deposit Guarantee and Investor Compensation Act). SCOPE OF THE CLAIM TO COMPENSATION The EdB protects per customer and at each member bank: 1. deposits up to a limit of € 100,000 and 2. 90 % of liabilities arising from securities transactions, limited to the equivalent of € 20,000. Besides all types of deposits – mainly demand, term and savings deposits – registered savings certificates are also protected. Liabilities in respect of which a bank has issued bearer instruments such as bearer bonds and bearer deposit certificates are, on the other hand, not protected. There is no claim to compensation unless deposits are denominated in euros or the currency of an EU member state. statutory compensation scheme 2 Entschädigungseinrichtung Compensation is provided in connection with securities transactions particularly if, contrary to its duties, a bank is unable to return securities owned by the customer and held in custody on the customer’s behalf. COMPENSATION PROCEDURE Creditors are notified promptly that compensation is payable. A claim to compensation must be submitted in writing by the customer to the EdB within one year of notification that compensation is payable. After expiry of this period, a claim to compensation can, as a rule, no longer be asserted. On settlement of a claim to compensation, claims on the bank are transferred to the EdB. A claim to compensation is statute-barred after a period of five years. The EdB is required to promptly meet duly examined claims, provided these relate to deposits, within 20 working days at the latest. In special cases, subject to the approval of the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), this deadline may be extended to up to 30 working days. The EdB must promptly examine claims which are intended to provide compensation for liabilities arising from securities transactions and meet these no later than three months after it has established the eligibility and amount of such claims. Disputes about the reasons for and the amount of a claim to compensation may be settled in civil courts. The EdB levies annual contributions on its member banks which are used to make payments to depositors when a compensation event occurs. statutory compensation scheme 3 Entschädigungseinrichtung EXTRACT FROM THE GERMAN DEPOSIT GUARANTEE AND INVESTOR COMPENSATION ACT (EINLAGENSICHERUNGS- UND ANLEGERENTSCHÄDIGUNGSGESETZ)* SECTION 3 CLAIM TO COMPENSATION (1) If a compensation event occurs, the creditor of an institution has a right to compensation as provided in Section 4 from the compensation scheme to which the institution has been assigned. (2) No claim to compensation pursuant to subsection (1) will be granted to 1. institutions within the meaning of Section 1 (1) number 1 and financial institutions within the meaning of Article 4 (1) number 26 of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 (OJ EC L 176 of 27 June 2013, p 1) which are domiciled in Germany or abroad, if they are acting in their own name and for their own account, 2. private and public insurance companies domiciled in Germany or abroad, 3. management companies within the meaning of Section 1 (14) of the Investment Code (Kapitalanlagegesetzbuch) which are domiciled in Germany or abroad, including the German, EU and foreign investment funds within the meaning of Section 1 (1) of the Investment Code managed by them, 4. the German Federal Government, a German state government, a legally dependent special fund of the German Federal Government or a German state government, a German local authority, or the national government, a regional government or a local authority of another country, 5. managers, general partners or members of supervisory bodies of the institution, persons holding 5% or more of the institution’s capital, auditors within the meaning of Section 28 of the Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz) and creditors with a similar status or function in an enterprise which, together with the institution, constitutes a group as defined in Section 18 of the Stock Corporation Act (Aktiengesetz), irrespective of its legal form, * Translation: Deutsche Bundesbank statutory compensation scheme 4 Entschädigungseinrichtung 6. spouses, registered partners and first and second-degree relatives of the persons referred to in number 5, unless the deposits, funds or financial instruments stem from the spouses’ or relatives’ own assets, 7. enterprises which, together with the institution, constitute a group within the meaning of Section 18 of the Stock Corporation Act, irrespective of its legal form, 8. creditors who were instrumental in initiating or have taken advantage of particular circumstances at the institution, especially if they have received high interest rates or financial advantages by virtue of individually negotiated agreements, which gave rise to the financial difficulties or significantly contributed to the deterioration of the institution’s financial situation, 9. enterprises which, pursuant to the provisions of the third book of the Commercial Code (Handelsgesetzbuch), are obliged to compile a management report or are exempted from this obligation only because of their inclusion in consolidated financial statements, comparable enterprises domiciled abroad, and 10. creditors whose claims on the institution are connected to transactions as a result of which a criminal conviction has been obtained against certain persons for money laundering within the meaning of Article 1 of Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2005 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purpose of money laundering and terrorist financing (OJ EC L 309 of 25 November 2005, p 15). If the creditor of an institution has acted for the account of a third party, determination of the claim to compensation in accordance with sentence 1 shall relate to the third party insofar as the fiduciary relationship is clearly labelled as such in the account designation. (3) The claim of the person entitled to compensation (compensatee) on the compensation scheme is statute-barred after five years. (4) Disputes about the reasons for and the amount of the claim to compensation shall be settled in the civil courts. statutory compensation scheme 5 Entschädigungseinrichtung SECTION 4 SCOPE OF THE CLAIM TO COMPENSATION (1) The claim to compensation of the creditor of the institution is based on the amount and scope of the creditor’s deposits or of the liabilities to the creditor arising from securities transactions, taking account of any set-off and retention rights of the institution. There is no claim to compensation if deposits or funds are not denominated in the currency of an EU member state or in euro. (2) The amount of the claim to compensation is limited to 1. the equivalent of € 100,000 of deposits, and 2. 90 per cent of the liabilities arising from securities transactions and the equivalent of € 20,000. Liabilities arising from securities transactions of an institution within the meaning of Section 1 (1) number 1 authorised to conduct banking business or provide financial services within the meaning of Section 1 (1) sentence 2 number 4 or 10 or subsection (1a) sentence 2 numbers 1 to 4 of the Banking Act are deemed to be deposits provided that the liabilities refer to the institution’s obligation to obtain the possession or ownership of funds for its customers. (3) The calculation of the amount of the claim to compensation shall be based on the amount of the deposits or monetary amounts and the market value of the financial instruments upon the occurrence of the compensation event. The claim to compensation includes, up to the limits pursuant to subsection (2), claims to interest. Interest accrues starting on the occurrence of the compensation event up to repayment of the liabilities, and at the latest up to the initiation of insolvency proceedings. The claim to compensation is reduced insofar as the asset loss sustained by the creditor as a result of the compensation event is offset by payments by third parties. (4) The limit pursuant to subsection (2) refers to the creditor’s aggregate claim on the institution, irrespective of the number of accounts, the currency or the location at which the accounts are maintained or the financial instruments are held. The compensation may be paid in euro. (5) In the case of joint accounts, the limit pursuant to subsection (2) is based on each account holder’s relative share.