CELEX: 51994PC0170
Language: en
Date: 1994-05-02
Title: Amended proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive amending Directives 77/780/EEC and 89/646/EEC in the field of credit institutions, 73/239/EEC and 92/49/EEC in the field of non-life insurance, 79/267/EEC and 92/96/EEC in the field of life assurance, and 93/22/EEC in the field of investment firms in order to reinforce prodential supervision

„ « , it
                   COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMVIUNITIES
                                                                C0M(94) 170 f i n a l - COD 468
                                                                Brussels, 02.05.1994
                      AMENDED PROPOSAL FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND COUNCIL
                                                   DIRECTIVE
                      AMENDING DIRECTIVES 77/780/EEC AND 89/646/EEC IN THE FIELD OF
                       CREDIT INSTITUTIONS, 73/239/EEC AND 92/49/EEC IN THE FIELD OF
                       NON-LIFE INSURANCE, 79/267/EEC AND 92/96/EEC IN THE FIELD OF
                     LIFE ASSURANCE, AND 93/22/EEC IN THE FIELD OF INVESTMENT FIRMS
                              IN ORDER TO REINFORCE PRUDENTIAL SUPERVISION
                           (presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 189 A (2)
                                                of the EC-Treaty)
P'-;:,*-'^iE^
 ---pagebreak---                        EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
I.        GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
1. On 28 July 1993 the Commission adopted a proposal for a Directive * amending
   Directives 77/780/EEC and 89/646/EEC (on credit institutions), 73/239/EEC and
   92/49/EEC (on non-life insurance), 79/267/EEC and 92/96/EEC (on life
   assurance), and 93/22/EEC (on investment firms). The proposal was sent to the
   Council by letter of the same date.
   The Council immediately sent copies of the proposal to Parliament and the
   Economic and Social Committee. It began consideration of the proposal on
   9 September.
2. At its 311th plenary session in Brussels on 21 December 1993, the Economic and
   Social Committee unanimously adopted an opinion on the proposal for a
   Directive,^ approving the principle but requesting certain amendments.
3. Parliament adopted a legislative resolution embodying its opinion on the
   Commission proposal for a Directive at its sitting on 9 March 1994.3
   Parliament's opinion includes the amendment considered below.
4. The amended proposal has been drafted to take account of the results of the
   consultations with both institutions. It also includes certain amendments resulting
   from the Treaty on European Union, in particular the new Article 189b inserted in
   the EC Treaty (co-decision procedure).
1  OJC 229,25.8.1993, p. 10.
2  OJC 52, 19.2.1994, p. 15.
3  PE 180.578 - Minutes of the sitting of 9 March 1994.
 ---pagebreak---  II.   COMMENTS ON PARLIAMENT'S PROPOSED AMENDMENT
 Parliament suggests an amendment to the initial proposal. As the purpose of this
amendment is to align the wording of Article 3, which requires the central
administration and the registered office of a financial undertaking to be in the same
Member State, on Article 58 of the Treaty, it is perfectly acceptable. At the sitting in
March, the Commission representative approved it without reservation.
Moreover, in line with the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee, the
Commission agreed to delete the penultimate recital (the fifteenth) from its proposal.
The fifteenth recital referred to the desirability of entrusting to a single external auditor
the organization and coordination of the separate audits of group accounts; it can be
dispensed with since, as the Economic and Social Committee points out in its opinion, it
could favour large international accounting firms if it were ever to become an article in
a directive.
 ---pagebreak---   Amended proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive amending
       Directives 77/780/EEC and 89/646/EEC in the field of credit institutions,
   73/239/EEC and 92/49/EEC in the field of non-life insurance, 79/267/EEC and
  92/96/EEC in the field of life assurance, and 93/22/EEC in the field of investment
                    firms in order to reinforce prudential supervision
INITIAL PROPOSAL                              AMENDED PROPOSAL
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND
COMMUNITIES,                                  THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN
                                              UNION.
Having regard to the Treaty establishing      Having regard to the Treaty establishing
the European Economic Community, and          the European Community, and in
in particular the first and third sentences   particular the first and third sentences of
of Article 57(2) thereof,                     Article 57(2) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the unchanged
Commission,
In cooperation        with  the   European deleted
Parliament,
Having regard to the opinion of the unchanged
Economic and Social Committee,
                 Recital 15
                                              deleted
Whereas in the case of a credit institution,
insurance undertaking or investment firm
with branches operating in more than one
country, or which is part of a group of
credit institutions, insurance undertakings
or investment firms which is established
in more than one country, it is desirable
to have a single auditor for the
organization and coordination of separate
audits wherever possible; whereas
however it is not appropriate to lay this
down as an obligation in this Directive;
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:                   HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
 ---pagebreak---                   Article 3                                 Article 3
    Head office and Registered office       Central administration and Registered
                                                              office
To Article 3(2) of Directive 77/780/EEC unchanged
and to Article 6(a) of Directive
79/239/EEC, as amended by Directive
92/49/EEC, and to Article 6(a) of
Directive 79/267/EEC, as amended by
Directive 92/96/EEC, the following
indent shall be added which reads:
    the head office of the financial — the central administration (where the
    undertaking must be in the same            most important         decision-making
    Member State as its registered office      bodies are established) of the financial
    and that in which the authorization is     undertaking must be in the same
   being requested.                            Member State as its registered office
                                               and that in which the authorization is
                                              being requested.
                Signatures                                 Signatures
Done at Brussels,                          Done at Brussels,
For the Council,                           For the European Parliament.
The President                              The President
                                           For the Council,
                                           The President
 ---pagebreak---                                                                      ISSN 0254-1475
                                                              COM (94) 170 final
                                                      DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                              10
                                 Catalogue number : CB-CO-94-183-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-77-68076-8
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities
LP2985 Luxembourg