natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
De danske myndigheder har fremført, at foranstaltningerne er i tråd med det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip og dermed ikke udgør statsstøtte til FIH-koncernen.
When the Commission informed Denmark about the expert assessment as regards the market value and real economic value of the measures, Denmark contested the results and submitted a number of questions and clarifications between 7 February and 11 September 2013.
Kommissionen vil derfor undersøge, om foranstaltningerne til fordel for FIH-koncernen opfylder kriterierne i det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip.
Denmark commented that the aid was limited to the minimum necessary [58], because it assumed the transfer value would not exceed the real economic value, but added that only a final valuation by the Commission could establish that fact.
Det undersøges, om en markedsaktør ville have foretaget en given transaktion på de samme vilkår og betingelser som den offentlige investor på det tidspunkt, hvor beslutningen om at stille offentlige midler til rådighed blev truffet.
Aside from the valuation aspects, Denmark noted the positive effects of the transfer on the regulatory position of FIH, in line with the goal of restoration of long-term viability contained in the restructuring plan.
Der er ikke tale om statsstøtte, når offentlige midler tildeles under omstændigheder og på betingelser, der svarer til markedsvilkår.
Denmark also argued that FIH’s deposit acquisition strategy is independent of the State aid measure and does not convey the intention of a ‘price leadership’ role, but is an essential part of its funding strategy.
I FIH-koncernens tilfælde mener Kommissionen i den forbindelse, at det er relevant at undersøge, i) hvorvidt der oprindeligt havde været en privat investor, som var villig til at finansiere foranstaltningerne på de samme vilkår og betingelser som medlemsstaten, ii) hvilket afkast denne investor i så fald krævede af investeringen sammenlignet med statens afkast, og iii) såfremt der ingen privat interesse havde været, hvilket forventet afkast [60] og hvilken andel af et eventuelt overskud af foranstaltningerne staten ville få, sammenlignet med hvad en markedsinvestor ville forvente, hvis denne skulle investere i foranstaltningerne på almindelige markedsvilkår.
Nevertheless, to alleviate the Commission’s concerns, Denmark has provided a commitment that FIH will adhere to a price leadership ban.
Det klareste bevis for, at en transaktion er i overensstemmelse med det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip, er, at betingelserne i aftalen ikke blot vil være acceptable for en hypotetisk markedsaktør, men at der rent faktisk findes en aktør, som deltager i den samme investering på de samme vilkår som staten.
ASSESSMENT
Tilstedeværelsen af andre investorer giver Kommissionen en rettesnor for at vurdere, om det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip kan finde anvendelse.
EXISTENCE OF STATE AID
Da Danmark iværksatte foranstaltningerne, var der ingen markedsaktør, som var parat til at træffe foranstaltninger til fordel for FIH svarende til dem, som blev truffet af statskontrollerede aktører.
According to Article 107(1) of the Treaty, State aid is any aid granted by a Member State or through State resources in any form whatsoever which distorts or threatens to distort competition by favouring certain undertakings or the production of certain goods, in so far as it affects trade between Member States.
Navnlig udtrykte hverken ejerkonsortiet eller nogen tredjemand interesse for at investere i FIH.
The Commission considers that the measures in favour of FIH described in Section 2.3 should be considered together as a package.
Kommissionen har derfor ikke belæg for at konkludere, at en markedsaktør under de givne forhold ville være villig til at investere i foranstaltningerne.
The measures are part of a single transaction as their elements are interdependent (chronologically and in terms of structure) and have been designed altogether in order to address FIH’s funding problem.
Den manglende private interesse vidner om bankens finansielle vanskeligheder og svage stilling.
State resources
Selv om der ikke er nogen aktør, som investerer på de samme vilkår som staten, behøver foranstaltningen stadig ikke at udgøre støtte, hvis en privat investor under lignende forhold ville have ydet den samme finansiering og krævet et afkast, der var mindst lige så højt som det afkast, som staten modtog.
The measures described in Section 2.3 involve State resources as they are directly financed by the FSC, which is a State-owned company (through the Danish Ministry of Business Affairs) responsible for providing different kinds of measures to Danish banks in the context of the financial crisis [59].
Den tidligere støtte fordrejer i forvejen de økonomiske forhold og giver indtryk af fortsat statsstøtte.
Existence of an advantage
Kommissionen har i sin vurdering taget højde for, om sådanne fordele afløses af nye.
The measures described in Section 2.3 provide an advantage as they result in an asset relief for FIH, thus improving the group’s capital ratios, while at the same time enabling the bank to better address its funding problems.
Finanstilsynet mente, at FIH befandt sig i en usikker situation, eftersom der var en væsentlig risiko for, at FIH ikke ville kunne opfylde de lovbestemte likviditetskrav, når de statsgaranterede obligationer udløb.
The Danish authorities have argued that the measures respect the MEOP and hence do not constitute State aid to FIH Group.
Denne situation kunne således have ført til, at FIH ville få inddraget sin banklicens [62].
The Commission will therefore assess whether the measures in favour of FIH Group fulfil the MEOP test.
Finanstilsynets holdning støtter således Kommissionens vurdering, nemlig at det er usandsynligt, at en markedsaktør ville have investeret i FIH.
That test examines whether a market operator would have taken part in a given operation on the same terms and conditions as the public investor at the time when the decision to make public resources available was taken.
Det kan gøres gældende, at Finanstilsynets rapport ikke var offentligt tilgængelig, men en markedsoperatør ville ikke desto mindre have haft adgang til løbetidsprofilen for FIH's statsgaranterede obligationer og kunne dermed være nået frem til samme konklusion.
There is no State aid when public funds are granted in circumstances and on terms which correspond to market conditions.
Da der ikke var en konkret privat investor, skal Kommissionen for at undersøge, om det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip kan finde anvendelse, vurdere, hvorvidt det samlede afkast på foranstaltningerne til fordel for FIH svarer til eller er højere end det forventede afkast, som en hypotetisk privat investor ville kræve for at foretage investeringen.
In that respect in the particular case of FIH Group the Commission considers that it is relevant to examine: (i) whether initially there had been a private investor willing to finance the measures on the same terms and conditions as the Member State;
Det forventede afkast på foranstaltningerne afhænger af de fremtidige indtægter fra cash flows, som skal foruddiskonteres ved hjælp af en passende diskonteringsfaktor for at nå frem til indtægternes nettonutidsværdi.
if so, what was the return on investment it demanded in comparison with the return for the State;
På baggrund af ekspertrådgivning foretog Kommissionen en markedsværdiansættelse af Newcos aktiver og en beregning af den forrentning, som Finansiel Stabilitet kunne forventede under forskellige scenarier for afviklingen af Newco.
and (iii) in the absence of private interest, what the expected return [60] and the distribution of the potential returns from the measures for the State would be, in comparison to those a market investor would expect if he was to undertake the measures under normal market economy conditions.
Det er nødvendigt at anvende en fordelingsmodel for at beregne nettonutidsværdien af såvel indtægterne fra en egenkapitalforrentning på 25 %, som de negative virkninger af kombinationen af store tab på aktiver i Newco og risikoen for, at FIH Holding misligholder sine forpligtelser [63].
In particular, it is important to check whether the transaction in its entirety generates positive cash flow, because no private operator, aiming at maximising of its profit, would enter a loss-making operation.
Figur 1
The most straightforward evidence showing that a transaction is in line with the MEOP is that the terms of the deal would not only be acceptable to a hypothetical market economy operator, but that there is actually such an operator participating in the same investment on the same terms as the State.
Foranstaltningens nettonutidsværdi for Finansiel Stabilitet
The presence of other investors provides a benchmark for the Commission to make its assessment of the applicability of the MEOP.
Afkast af egenkapitalinvesteringen på 2 mia. DKK ved forskellige afviklingsværdier af Newcos aktiver
At the time Denmark granted the measures, there was no market participant prepared to grant similar measures to FIH as those which were granted by entities under the control of the State.
Finansiel Stabilitets afkast, når sandsynligheden for misligholdelse fra FIH Holdings side stiger, i takt med at Newcos aktiver forringes (venstre akse, i mio. DKK)
In particular, neither the consortium of owners nor any third party expressed any intention to invest in FIH.
markedsudledt sandsynlighed for, at dette scenarie opstår (højre akse)
The Commission has no grounds to conclude that under those circumstances a market economy operator would be willing to participate in the measures.
Figur 1 viser ved forskellige afviklingsværdier af Newcos aktiver (fra 5,1 mia. DKK til 28,3 mia. DKK) aktieoverdragelsesaftalens nettonutidsværdi.
The absence of private interest is an indication of the financial difficulties and weak position of the bank.
Den stiplede linje viser sandsynligheden for, at de enkelte scenarier vil opstå (fra 0,1 % til 7,5 %), og aflæses på højre akse.
In the absence of an operator investing on the same terms as the State, a measure can still be still free of aid, if in similar circumstances a private operator would have granted the same funding, asking a return at least as high as the return the State received.
I de mest sandsynlige scenarier er afkastet en anelse negativt.
That assessment should, in principle, be based on a business plan taking into account available information and foreseeable developments at the time when the public funding was granted and it should not rely on any analysis based on a later situation.
Som det fremgår af figur 1, er aktieoverdragelsesaftalens samlede, sandsynlighedsvægtede gennemsnitlige nettonutidsværdi også negativ.
Furthermore, one of the situations in which it is hardest to apply the MEOP is where a company is already a beneficiary of State aid.
Ifølge ekspertens beregning udgør den 726 mio. DKK.
In this case, FIH had already received a recapitalisation on 30 June 2009, which it repaid on 2 July 2012.
Aktieoverdragelsesaftalen genererer således et tab i stedet for et overskud.
The hybrid instruments used for the recapitalisation were remunerated at […] [61] %.
En markedsaktør ville have krævet en egenkapitalforrentning på mindst 10 % [64] pr. år på en tilsvarende investering på 2 mia. DKK, svarende til en forrentning på 1,33 mia. DKK over Newcos syvårige levetid.
FIH also participated in the Danish guarantee scheme.
Kommissionen konkluderer derfor, at ingen markedsaktør ville have været villig til at investere på vilkår og betingelser, der svarer til dem i aktieoverdragelsesaftalen.
Whilst those facts do not exclude the application of the MEOP in this case per se, they are indicative of the difficulties faced by FIH and would affect the willingness of private investors to invest in the measures.
Foranstaltningerne er således ikke i tråd med det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip [65].
The previous aid already distorts the economic circumstances, creating a perception of continued State support.
Det skal derfor bemærkes, at i beregningen i betragtning 91 til 93 tog Kommissionen højde for korrespondancen fra Danmark dateret 7. februar og 11. marts 2013 samt senere korrespondance [66], hvori Danmark gav ikke tidligere oplyste detaljer, såsom specifikke beskrivelser af komponenterne i den variable købspris, referencedatoen på de fremsendte oplysninger om de lån, som skulle overdrages fra FIH til Newco, udviklingen i porteføljens kreditkvalitet fra december 2011 til september 2012 og en mere detaljeret analyse af de »uforpligtede kreditlinjer« i porteføljen.
In its evaluation, the Commission has taken the replacement of such advantages by new ones into consideration.
Beregningerne i Danmarks argumentation [67] står desuden ikke for en nærmere prøvelse.
The FSA was of the view that FIH was in a precarious position as there was significant risk that FIH would not be able to meet its statutory requirements as regards liquidity when its government-guaranteed debt expired.
For det første er de forudgående nedskrivninger og risikopositioner ikke underbygget af en uafhængig værdiansættelsesrapport [68].
That situation could, accordingly, have led to a withdrawal of FIH’s banking licence [62].
I betragtning af den eventualitet, at FIH-koncernen risikerer ikke at kunne indfri efterfølgende garantier, er der desuden intet, der forhindrer, at Newcos tab kunne overstige 2,7 mia. DKK, og i det tilfælde vil Finansiel Stabilitet (og dermed den danske stat) kontraktligt være forpligtet til at rekapitalisere Newco inden dennes endelige afvikling.
The position of the FSA therefore supports the Commission’s assessment that a market operator would have been unlikely to invest in FIH.
Kommissionen konkluderer derfor, at påstanden om, at ethvert investeringstab vil være begrænset til 1,05 mia. DKK, ikke er underbygget.
While it can be argued that the FSA’s report was not in the public domain, a market operator would have had access to the maturity profile of FIH’s government-guaranteed debt and thus been able to derive the same conclusion.
Den omstændighed, at foranstaltningernes betingelser blev forhandlet mellem Finansiel Stabilitet og FIH Holding, betyder ikke nødvendigvis, at foranstaltningerne blev gennemført på markedsvilkår.
In the absence of an actual private investor, to further check the applicability of the MEOP the Commission has to assess whether the overall return of the measures in favour of FIH is equal to or higher than the expected return that a hypothetical private investor would demand in order to make that investment.
Hvis Danmark agtede at tildele et betragteligt beløb i ekstra støtte til en bank i alvorlige likviditetsvanskeligheder, ville dette forhold alene ikke udelukke forhandlinger mellem myndighederne og denne bank om specifikke forhold vedrørende transaktionen.
The expected return of the measures depends on the future stream of revenue from cash flows, which has to be discounted to the present day to derive its net present value (‘NPV’) using an appropriate rate of discount.
På grund af de bilaterale aspekter af de pågældende forhandlinger manglede de elementer, som findes i en åben, ikke-diskriminerende udbudsprocedure eller i en sammenligning med lignende markedstransaktioner.
Relying on expert advice, the Commission estimated the market value of Newco’s assets and modelled the expected return for the FSC for entire distribution of liquidation values of Newco’s equity.
Foranstaltningernes forenelighed med markedsvilkårene er således ikke en automatisk følge af det forhold, at der har fundet forhandlinger sted.
In so doing, it has taken into account all elements of the share purchase agreement, such as the net liquidation value, revenues and costs incurred by the FSC and FIH Group and the purchase price adjustment, which included the loss-absorbing loan.
Med hensyn til KPMG-rapporten af 7. juni 2012 er Kommissionen enig i, at som følge af foranstaltningernes kompleksitet bør de vilkår og betingelser, der gælder for dem, vurderes i deres helhed, fordi der ikke findes enkeltbestemmelser, som kan tilskrives afkastet på de enkelte elementer.
The use of a distribution model is necessary to calculate the NPV of both the benefits stemming from a 25 % equity upside participation and the negative effects from the combination of large asset losses in Newco and a default of FIH Holding if such a scenario were to materialise [63].
I KPMG-rapportens analyse overses imidlertid risikoen for mere ekstreme negative scenarier, hvor FIH Holding ikke vil kunne indfri sine forpligtelser.
Graph 1
I analysen tages der endvidere ikke højde for en forrentning af investeringen på 2,0 mia. DKK.
Net Present Value of the measure for the FSC
Som anført i betragtning 95 kan der ikke være tale om markedsadfærd, når der ikke sker en årlig forrentning af kapitalen, og eftersom der kun er mulighed for en andel på 25 % af enhver positiv forrentning af egenkapitalen over en 7-årig investeringsperiode, både isoleret set og som en parameter i den samlede forrentningsmodel [69].
Return on the DKK 2 Billion Equity investment for different liquidation values of Newco's Assets
Kommissionen bemærker i den sammenhæng, at FIH i forbindelse med en tidligere tilførsel af hybrid kernekapital [70] skulle betale en årlig kuponrente på […] %.
Return for FSC, taking into account a default probability of FIH Holding that increases as Newco's assets deteriorate (left hand scale, in DKK billion)
I starten af marts 2012 var FIH's prioritetsobligationer noteret på markedet med et implicit afkast på over 10 %.
market implied probability of this scenario occurring (right hand scale)
Der er således belæg for Kommissionens argument om, at egenkapitalforrentningen bør være på mindst 10 %.
Graph 1 shows, for different liquidation values of Newco’s assets (from DKK 5,1 billion to DKK 28,3 billion), the NPV of the share purchase agreement.
En markedsoperatør vil sandsynligvis kræve en forrentning, der overstiger dette niveau, i lyset af de særlige risici, der er forbundet med størrelsen og den ringe kvalitet [71] af Newcos ejendomsportefølje samt den lave prioritet, der er forbundet med en egenkapitalinvestering.
Each of the scenarios occurs with a probability indicated by the dotted line against the right-hand scale (0,1 % to 7,5 %).
Den forrentning på 6,5 %, som Danmark [72] kalkulerede med, er derfor klart utilstrækkelig.
In the most likely scenarios, the return is slightly negative.
Det bør også bemærkes, at transaktionen genererer et negativt forventet afkast.
As can be seen from Graph 1, the overall probability-weighted average NPV of the share purchase agreement operation is also negative.
Kommissionen konkluderer, at foranstaltningerne til fordel for FIH ikke er i tråd med det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip.
The expert calculation shows it amounts to DKK 726 million.
Selektivitet
As a result, the share purchase agreement generates a loss instead of a profit.
Foranstaltningerne vedrører kun FIH-koncernen og Newco.
A market economy operator would have required an equity remuneration of at least 10 % [64] per annum on a similar DKK 2 billion investment, which would have generated about DKK 1,33 billion over the seven-year existence period of Newco.
Foranstaltningen er derfor selektiv.
The Commission therefore concludes that no market economy operator would have been willing to invest on terms and conditions equivalent to those of the share purchase agreement.
Fordrejning af konkurrencevilkårene og påvirkning af samhandelen mellem medlemsstaterne
As a result the measures are not in line with the MEOP [65].
Foranstaltningerne bidrog til at styrke FIH's kapital- og likviditetssituation sammenlignet med situationen for bankens konkurrenter, som ikke har fordel af lignende foranstaltninger.
It should be noted that in the calculation set out in recitals 91-93, the Commission took into account correspondence from Denmark dated 7 February and 11 March 2013, as well as subsequent correspondence [66] in which Denmark submitted previously undisclosed elements such as specific interpretations of the components of the variable purchase price, the reference date of the submitted loan exposure tapes that were earmarked for transfer from FIH to Newco, the evolution of the credit quality of the portfolio between December 2011 and September 2012 and a more granular analysis of the ‘uncommitted credit lines’ in the portfolio.
Foranstaltningen gav derfor FIH mulighed for at forbedre sin markedsposition.
Furthermore, the quantifications contained in Denmark’s arguments [67] do not withstand scrutiny.
Foranstaltningen kan således medføre en fordrejning af konkurrencevilkårene.
First, the ex ante write-down amounts and risk provisions are not substantiated by an independent valuation report [68].
I betragtning af bankmarkedets integrering på europæisk plan påvirker den fordel, som FIH fik, både konkurrenter i Danmark (hvor banker fra andre medlemsstater opererer) og i andre medlemsstater.
Moreover, when considering the possibility of FIH Group not being able to honour ex post guarantees, there is no reason why the losses of Newco could not exceed DKK 2,7 billion, in which case the FSC (and hence the Danish government) would be contractually required to recapitalise Newco prior to its final liquidation.
Det må derfor konkluderes, at foranstaltningerne vil kunne påvirke samhandelen mellem medlemsstaterne.
The Commission therefore concludes that the claim that any investment losses would be limited to DKK 1,05 billion is not substantiated.
STØTTEBELØB
The fact that the terms of the measures were negotiated between the FSC and FIH Holding does not necessarily mean that the measures were executed on market terms.
Foranstaltningernes samlede støttebeløb [73] beregnes til ca. 2,25 mia. DKK (ca. 300 mio. EUR).
If Denmark intended to grant a substantial amount of additional aid to a bank facing grave liquidity difficulties, that fact alone would not exclude negotiations between the authorities and that bank on specific points of the transaction.
I beregningen af støttebeløbet har Kommissionen kalkuleret med:
Because of the bilateral aspect of the negotiation which took place, it lacked features such as those of an open non-discriminatory tender procedure or of a comparison to similar market transactions.
en fordel i forbindelse med formlen i aktieoverdragelsesaftalen (0,73 mia. DKK) [74]
Therefore, the conformity of the measures with market conditions does not follow automatically from the fact that negotiations occurred.
et afkald på egenkapitalforrentning (1,33 mia. DKK) [75]
As regards the KPMG report of 7 June 2012, the Commission agrees that due to the complexity of the measures their terms and conditions should be assessed in their entirety, because there are no individual provisions that can be allocated to the remuneration of each individual element.
for høje administrationshonorarer (0,14 mia. DKK).
However, the analysis contained in that KPMG report overlooked the possibility of more extreme downside scenarios under which FIH Holding might not be able to honour its commitments.
Som en formildende omstændighed vurderede Kommissionen, at den tidlige annullering af statsgarantier på 0,28 mia. DKK skulle fratrækkes det samlede støttebeløb.
Moreover, the analysis failed to address a remuneration on the DKK 2,0 billion of capital invested.
Som anført i afsnit 5.1 anlagde Kommissionen en holistisk tilgang til værdiansættelsen af alle renter og andre cash flows, honorarer og garantier under hensyntagen til:
As indicated in recital 95, there cannot be conformity with market behaviour given that there is no annual remuneration on the capital and given a mere 25 % participation of any equity upside over a seven-year investment period, both on a standalone basis and as a parameter in the entire remuneration model [69].
det forhold, at ikke alle elementer i transaktionen kunne knyttes til et bestemt punkt i vederlagsformlerne.
In that context, the Commission notes that under a previous Tier 1 hybrid recapitalisation [70] FIH had to pay an annual coupon of […] % per annum.
I tråd med meddelelsen om værdiforringede aktiver gjorde Kommissionen brug af eksterne eksperters rådgivning om værdiansættelse [76].
Furthermore, in the beginning of March 2012 FIH’s senior debt was quoted on the market with an implied yield exceeding 10 %.