natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
In the course of the investigation, no information was received indicating that the Consortium would not be a serious undertaking, until, at a very late stage in the investigation, the Austrian authorities drew the Commission’s attention to a German case in which the Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht (hereinafter called ‘BaFin’) had prevented the sale of shares in a German bank to an undisclosed Ukrainian group, in view of doubts surrounding the unclear origin of the funds – an assessment which was confirmed by a German administrative court [4].
Med preiskavo niso bile prejete nobene informacije, ki bi kazale, da konzorcij ni resno podjetje, dokler zelo pozno v preiskavi avstrijske oblasti Komisije niso opozorile na nemški primer, v katerem je urad Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht (v nadaljnjem besedilu „urad BaFin“) preprečil prodajo delnic nemške banke neimenovani ukrajinski skupini zaradi dvomov o jasnem izvoru sredstev – to oceno je potrdilo nemško upravno sodišče [4].
GRAWE (the beneficiary)
Družba GRAWE (prejemnica)
The buyer GRAWE consists of Grazer Wechselseitige Versicherung AG and GW Beteiligungserwerbs- und -verwaltungs-G.m.b.H.
Kupec, družba GRAWE, je sestavljena iz družb Grazer Wechselseitige Versicherung AG in GW Beteiligungserwerbs- und -verwaltungs-G.m.b.H.
GRAWE is a well established major Austrian financial services group.
Družba GRAWE je uveljavljena velika avstrijska skupina za finančne storitve.
It is active in insurance, banking and real estate both in Austria and in a large number of Central European countries, with subsidiaries in Slovenia, Croatia, Belgrade, Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Podgorica.
Deluje na področju zavarovalništva, finančnih storitev in nepremičnin v Avstriji in številnih srednjeevropskih državah; podružnice ima v Sloveniji, na Hrvaškem, v Beogradu, Sarajevu, Banjaluki, na Madžarskem, v Bolgariji, Romuniji, Ukrajini, Republiki Moldaviji in Podgorici.
Head offices are mostly located in the national capital.
Glavne uprave so po navadi v glavnih mestih držav.
Grazer Wechselseitige Versicherung AG offers all the usual forms of insurance, but also proposes financial and leasing services.
Družba Grazer Wechselseitige Versicherung AG ponuja vse običajne oblike zavarovanja ter finančne storitve in storitve lizinga.
Its headquarters are in Graz and there are main offices in all provincial capitals.
Njen sedež je v Gradcu, glavne uprave pa v vseh glavnih mestih dežel.
Annual premium income in 2006 came to about EUR 660 million and the number of insurance contracts managed amounted to 3,3 million.
Njen letni dohodek od premij je v letu 2006 znašal približno 660 milijonov EUR, zavarovalnih polic, za katere skrbi družba, pa je bilo 3,3 milijona.
In 2006 Grazer Wechselseitige Versicherung AG held direct stakes in two entities in the banking and investment sector.
Leta 2006 je bila družba Grazer Wechselseitige Versicherung AG neposredno udeležena v dveh finančnih družbah v bančnem in naložbenem sektorju.
The business plan drawn up by GRAWE for the acquisition of BB did not provide for any change in BB’s business model or for the integration of BB into the existing banking activities of the group.
V poslovnem načrtu, ki ga je za pridobitev banke BB pripravila družba GRAWE, niso bile predvidene spremembe poslovnega modela banke BB ali vključevanja banke BB v obstoječe bančne dejavnosti skupine.
In 2007 GRAWE sold about 15 % of its holding in HYPO Group Alpe Adria and realised considerable book profits.
Leta 2007 je družba GRAWE prodala približno 15 % svojega deleža v skupini HYPO Group Alpe Adria in dosegla precejšen knjigovodski dobiček.
In using the existing loss carry-over of EUR […] [5] million [6] of BB, GRAWE made tax savings [7] which it used to offset the net purchase price of EUR […] million [8] paid for BB.
S prenosom obstoječe izgube banke BB v višini […] [5] milijonov EUR [6] je družba GRAWE prihranila pri davkih [7], kar je uporabila za pobotanje nakupne neto cene v višini […] [5] Poslovna skrivnost. milijonov EUR [8], ki jo je plačala za BB.
Until it was sold, HYPO Bank Burgenland AG was a joint stock corporation under Austrian law with its registered office in Eisenstadt, Austria.
Do prodaje je bila banka HYPO Bank Burgenland AG delniška družba v skladu z avstrijsko zakonodajo s sedežem v Eisenstadtu v Avstriji.
Before the sale of BB to the Austrian insurance group GRAWE, which is the aid measure in question, and since the shareholders’ meeting of March 2005, the Federal Province of Burgenland (hereinafter called ‘the Province of Burgenland’) held 100 % of the equity [9].
Pred prodajo banke BB avstrijski zavarovalniški skupini GRAWE, kar je zadevni ukrep pomoči, in od sestanka delničarjev marca 2005 je imela zvezna dežela Gradiščanska (v nadaljevanju „Gradiščanska“) 100-odstotni lastniški delež [9].
BB group was of only regional importance with a balance sheet value of some EUR 3,3 billion in 2005.
Skupina BB je bila pomembna samo za regijo, njena bilančna vrednost pa je bila leta 2005 približno 3,3 milijarde EUR.
Prior to the sale, BB operated under a full banking licence in the Province of Burgenland and in western Hungary, where it had a wholly owned subsidiary, Sopron Bank RT. Founded as a regional mortgage bank, BB’s task had been to promote monetary and credit transactions in the Province of Burgenland.
Pred prodajo je banka BB poslovala v skladu z dovoljenjem za opravljanje vseh bančnih storitev na Gradiščanskem in zahodnem Madžarskem, kjer je imela v popolni lasti podružnico, banko Sopron Bank RT. Banka BB je bila ustanovljena kot regionalna hipotekarna banka, njena naloga pa je bila spodbujati denarne in kreditne transakcije na Gradiščanskem.
Historically, its main business had been to grant mortgage loans and issue mortgage bonds and municipal bonds.
V preteklosti je bil njen glavni posel dajanje hipotekarnih posojil in izdajanje hipotekarnih ter komunalnih obveznic.
At the time of the sale, it acted as a universal bank and offered all other banking and financial services.
Ob prodaji je delovala kot splošna banka, ki je ponujala vse druge bančniške in finančne storitve.
Until its privatisation, BB still benefited from so-called Ausfallhaftung [10].
Do privatizacije je imela banka BB še vedno korist od tako imenovane garancije Ausfallhaftung [10].
Following an agreement between the Commission and Austria leading to Commission Decision C(2003) 1329 final [11], Ausfallhaftung had to be abolished by 1 April 2007.
Po sporazumu med Komisijo in Avstrijo, katerega posledica je bil Sklep Komisije C(2003) 1329 konč. [11], je bilo treba garancijo Ausfallhaftung odpraviti do 1. aprila 2007.
As a general rule, all liabilities existing on 2 April 2003 continue to be covered by Ausfallhaftung until their maturity expires.
Praviloma je garancija Ausfallhaftung še naprej krila vse obveznosti, ki so obstajale 2. aprila 2003, dokler niso zapadle.
After that, Ausfallhaftung can be maintained between 2 April 2003 and 1 April 2007 for newly created liabilities provided their maturity does not go beyond 30 September 2017.
Po tem se je lahko garancija Ausfallhaftung ohranila od 2. aprila 2003 do 1. aprila 2007 za novo nastale obveznosti, če ne zapadejo po 30. septembru 2017.
However, the privatisation of BB had the effect that this transitional period ended prematurely, on the day of closing of the deal with GRAWE, i.e. on 12 May 2006 [12].
Vendar pa se je zaradi privatizacije banke BB to prehodno obdobje končalo prej, na dan sklenitve posla z družbo GRAWE, torej 12. maja 2006 [12].
New liabilities incurred after that date are no longer covered by Ausfallhaftung.
Novih obveznosti, nastalih po tem datumu, garancija Ausfallhaftung ne krije več.
On 31 December 2005, liabilities covered by Ausfallhaftung amounted to approximately EUR 3,1 billion, not including the issue of the additional bonds described in paragraph 44.
decembra 2005 so obveznosti, ki jih je krila garancija Ausfallhaftung, znašale približno 3,1 milijarde EUR, brez izdaje dodatnih obveznic, opisanih v odstavku 44.
As a result of past losses, BB had tax losses to carry over of approximately EUR 376,9 million as at 31 December 2004. Since 1 January 2005, Austrian tax law allows companies (within the same group) to offset profits and losses against each other.
Zaradi preteklih izgub je imela banka BB davčne izgube, ki jih je bilo treba prenesti in so 31. decembra 2004 znašale približno 376,9 milijona EUR. Od 1. januarja 2005 avstrijska davčna zakonodaja dovoljuje družbam (ki so del iste skupine), da medsebojno pobotajo dobičke in izgube.
It depends on the company’s specific structure to what extent this can be done.
Obseg, do katerega je to mogoče, je odvisen od strukture posamezne družbe.
The restructuring of BB
Prestrukturiranje banke BB
By Decision of 7 May 2004 [13] (hereinafter called ‘the restructuring decision’), the Commission approved restructuring aid for BB totalling EUR 360 million consisting of two measures: a guarantee agreement dated 20 June 2000 between the Province of Burgenland and BB (EUR 171 million plus 5 % interest [14] and a framework agreement dated 23 October 2000, which consists of a claims waiver on the part of Bank Austria for BB totalling EUR 189 million, a better-fortune agreement between these two contracting parties [15] and a guarantee agreement on the part of the Province of Burgenland for BB amounting to EUR 189 million [16].
Z Odločbo z dne 7. maja 2004 [13] (v nadaljnjem besedilu „odločba o prestrukturiranju“) je Komisija odobrila pomoč za prestrukturiranje banke BB v skupnem znesku 360 milijonov EUR, sestavljeno iz dveh ukrepov: iz garancijskega sporazuma z dne 20. junija 2000 med Gradiščansko in banko BB (171 milijonov EUR in 5-odstotne obresti [14] ter okvirnega sporazuma z dne 23. oktobra 2000, sestavljenega iz odpovedi terjatvam banke Bank Austria do banke BB v skupnem znesku 189 milijonov EUR, sporazuma o izboljšavi stanja med navedenima pogodbenicama [15] ter garancijskega sporazuma med Gradiščansko in banko BB v višini 189 milijonov EUR [16].
The restructuring Decision included the following retrospective amendments to the guarantee agreement of 20 June 2000 and the framework agreement.
Odločba o prestrukturiranju je vključevala naslednje spremembe za nazaj v zvezi z garancijskim sporazumom z dne 20. junija 2000 in okvirnim sporazumom.
The guarantee agreement of 20 June 2000 was modified so that BB’s annual operating profits will no longer be used to reduce the amount covered by the guarantee provided by the Province of Burgenland and BB will be able to call on the guarantee at the earliest when the annual accounts for the financial year 2025 are closed.
Garancijski sporazum z dne 20. junija 2000 je bil spremenjen tako, da se letni dobiček banke BB iz poslovanja ne bo več uporabljal za zmanjševanje zneska, ki ga krije garancija Gradiščanske, in banka BB bo lahko unovčila garancijo šele, ko bodo zaključeni letni računovodski izkazi za finančno leto 2025.
The Province of Burgenland will have the right to make the open guarantee payment to BB in full or only in part as from the moment when the annual accounts for the financial year 2010 are closed.
Gradiščanska bo imela pravico do plačila odprte garancije banki BB v celotnem ali delnem znesku od zaključka letnih računovodskih izkazov za leto 2010.
The framework agreement of 23 October 2000 was amended as follows: BB’s annual profits will no longer be used to meet the better-fortune obligation towards Bank Austria AG.
Okvirni sporazum z dne 23. oktobra je bil spremenjen takole: letni dobiček banke BB se ne bo več uporabljal za kritje obveze o izboljšavi stanja, ki jo ima banka BB do banke Bank Austria AG.
The Province of Burgenland will meet the better-fortune obligation towards Bank Austria and will pay the amounts still outstanding under the guarantee agreement immediately prior to the privatisation of BB with a one-off payment.
Obvezo o izboljšavi stanja do banke Bank Austria bo izpolnila Gradiščanska in plačala zneske, ki so še vedno neporavnani v skladu z garancijskim sporazumom, z enkratnim plačilom neposredno pred privatizacijo banke BB.
The amendments regarding the use of annual profits to reduce the amounts guaranteed would not have taken effect if BB had not been privatised.
Sprememb glede uporabe letnega dobička za zmanjševanje zajamčenih zneskov ne bi bilo, če banka BB ne bi bila privatizirana.
As long as the Province of Burgenland remained the owner of BB, the two guarantees would have remained unchanged, the amounts guaranteed would have been further reduced by BB’s annual profits and BB’s better-fortune obligation would have remained unchanged.
Dokler bi bila Gradiščanska lastnica banke BB, bi ti garanciji ostali nespremenjeni, zajamčeni zneski pa bi se še dodatno zmanjšali za letni dobiček banke BB, obveza banke BB o izboljšavi stanja pa bi ostala nespremenjena.
BB’s privatisation was an essential component of the restructuring plan approved by the Commission.
Privatizacija banke BB je bila bistven del načrta za prestrukturiranje, ki ga je odobrila Komisija.
The Province of Burgenland regarded BB’s privatisation as the best possible guarantee of the bank’s long-term viability.
Gradiščanska je menila, da je privatizacija banke BB najboljše mogoče jamstvo za dolgoročno sposobnost preživetja banke.
Following the Commission Decision and starting in 2003, the Province of Burgenland made two attempts to sell and privatise BB, both of which failed.
Po Odločbi Komisije je Gradiščanska od leta 2003 dvakrat skušala prodati in privatizirati banko BB, vendar sta oba poskusa propadla.
The third attempt — the aid measure described below — started with an announcement in the media on 18 October 2005.
Tretji poskus – spodaj opisani ukrep pomoči – se je začel z objavo v medijih 18. oktobra 2005.
The privatisation of BB
Privatizacija banke BB
In 2005 the Province of Burgenland launched a third tender procedure to privatise BB.
Leta 2005 je Gradiščanska začela tretji razpisni postopek za privatizacijo banke BB.
The international investment bank HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt KGaA, Düsseldorf, jointly with HSBC plc, London (together hereinafter called ‘HSBC’), which were commissioned to carry out the privatisation process, publicly announced the intention to sell BB in the Official Journal of Vienna (Amtsblatt zur Wiener Zeitung) on 18 October 2005 at a national level and in the English-language edition of Financial Times Europe on 19 October 2005 at an international level and asked parties interested in acquiring shares in BB to come forward.
Mednarodna naložbena banka HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt KGaA iz Düsseldorfa s HSBC plc, London (skupaj v nadaljnjem besedilu „družba HSBC“), ki je bila pooblaščena za izvajanje postopka privatizacije, je namen o prodaji banke BB objavila na nacionalni ravni v uradnem listu, ki izhaja kot priloga k dnevniku Wiener Zeitung 18. oktobra 2005 in na mednarodni ravni v angleški izdaji časopisa Financial Times Europe 19. oktobra 2005 ter pozvala vse zainteresirane stranke za nakup delnic v banki BB, naj se odzovejo.
While 24 potential bidders both within and outside the European Union reacted to the announcement, only 14 officially signalled their interest in tendering and were therefore provided with a ‘process letter’ in order to enter the next phase of the tender process.
Na to objavo se je odzvalo 24 morebitnih ponudnikov iz Evropske unije in zunaj nje, vendar jih je samo 14 uradno oznanilo svoje zanimanje za oddajo ponudbe in torej prejelo „pismo o postopku“, da so lahko vstopili v naslednjo fazo razpisnega postopka.
In the process letter, the potential bidders were asked for an indicative, non-binding offer to buy the bank before 6 December 2005.
V pismu o postopku se je od morebitnih ponudnikov zahtevala okvirna nezavezujoča ponudba za odkup banke pred 6. decembrom 2005.
Only three of the 14 potential bidders came forward with indicative offers on time, which were pitched at EUR 65 million, EUR 100 million and EUR 140 million respectively [17], and entered the second phase aimed at leading to a binding offer for which the deadline was set at 6 February 2006.
Samo trije od 14 morebitnih ponudnikov so pravočasno predložili okvirne ponudbe, in sicer v višini 65 milijonov, 100 milijonov oziroma 140 milijonov EUR [17], ter vstopili v drugo fazo, katere namen je bil oblikovanje zavezujoče ponudbe, za kar je bil določen rok do 6. februarja 2006.
This second phase included, in particular, a due diligence phase to be carried out in an Internet data room from 7 January to 30 January 2006, supplemented by a number of presentations and meetings.
Ta druga faza je vključevala predvsem fazo dolžne skrbnosti, ki jo je bilo treba opraviti v varovanem podatkovnem okolju preko interneta med 7. in 30. januarjem 2006, dopolnile pa so jo tudi številne predstavitve in sestanki.
The bidders also had the opportunity to ask questions during and after the due diligence process.
Ponudniki so lahko tudi postavljali vprašanja med postopkom dolžne skrbnosti in po njem.
On 6 February 2006 two bidders submitted a binding offer, GRAWE on the one hand, and the Consortium on the other.
Zavezujočo ponudbo sta 6. februarja 2006 predložila dva ponudnika: družba GRAWE in konzorcij.
With these two bidders the binding offers were individually negotiated further.
S ponudnikoma so nato stekla nadaljnja individualna pogajanja o zavezujočih ponudbah.
These negotiations ended on 4 March 2006.
Pogajanja so se končala 4. marca 2006.
On 5 March 2006 the Province of Burgenland awarded the contract to GRAWE despite the purchase price offered by GRAWE (EUR 100,3 million) being significantly lower than the price offered by the Consortium (EUR 155 million).
Gradiščanska je 5. marca 2006 dodelila pogodbo družbi GRAWE ne glede na to, da je bila nakupna cena, ki jo je ponudila družba GRAWE (100,3 milijona EUR), precej nižja od cene, ki jo je ponudil konzorcij (155 milijonov EUR).
The decision was based on a written recommendation by HSBC (hereinafter called ‘the recommendation’) dated 4 March 2006, supplemented by oral explanations to the members of the Government of the Province of Burgenland on the day of the decision.
Odločitev je temeljila na pisnem priporočilu družbe HSBC (v nadaljnjem besedilu „priporočilo“) z dne 4. marca 2006, dopolnjenem z ustnimi obrazložitvami članom vlade dežele Gradiščanske na dan odločitve.
The Government of the Province of Burgenland formally agreed to the sale on 7 March 2006.
Vlada dežele Gradiščanske se je 7. marca 2006 formalno strinjala s prodajo.
The closing of the deal took place on 12 May 2006.
Posel je bil sklenjen 12. maja 2006.
Capital Bank, a subsidiary of GRAWE, subscribed to EUR 350 million of the total EUR 700 million bonds.
Banka Capital Bank, podružnica družbe GRAWE, je vpisala obveznice v vrednosti 350 milijonov EUR od skupaj za 700 milijonov EUR obveznic.
The selection criteria in the process letter
Merila za izbor v pismu o postopku
The following criteria for evaluating the offers were based on a decision of the Government of the Province of Burgenland of 6 September 2005 and were enumerated in the process letter:
Naslednja merila za ocenjevanje ponudb so temeljila na odločitvi vlade dežele Gradiščanske z dne 6. septembra 2005, navedena pa so bila v pismu o postopku:
the purchase price and reliability of the purchase price payment;
nakupna cena in zanesljivost plačila nakupne cene;
maintenance of the autonomy of BB;
ohranitev samostojnosti BB;
continued operation of BB and, at the same time, avoidance of use of Ausfallhaftung;
neprekinjeno delovanje BB in istočasno izogibanje uporabi garancije Ausfallhaftung;
willingness to conduct any necessary capital increases;
pripravljenost opraviti kakršno koli potrebno dokapitalizacijo;
transaction security;
varnost transakcije;
considerations of time in carrying out the transaction.
premisleki glede časa pri opravljanju transakcij.
The process letter further stated that the shareholder of BB would, on the basis of the recommendation, make a discretionary choice as to which bidders could enter the second phase of the sales process.
V pismu o postopku je bilo navedeno tudi, da bo delničar banke BB na podlagi priporočila prosto izbral, kateri ponudniki lahko vstopijo v drugo fazo postopka prodaje.
The warranty clause in the contract with GRAWE
Garancijska klavzula v pogodbi z družbo GRAWE
The contract with GRAWE contains a warranty by the Province of Burgenland that the State aid rules are infringed neither in the context of the guarantee agreements which are the subject matter of the restructuring decision, nor in the context of the sales contract itself.
Pogodba z družbo GRAWE vsebuje garancijo Gradiščanske, da pravila o državni pomoči niso kršena niti v okviru garancijskih sporazumov, ki so vsebina Odločbe o prestrukturiranju, niti v okviru same prodajne pogodbe.
This warranty is supplemented by a clause which entitles the buyer GRAWE to be compensated by the Province of Burgenland in respect of any recovery ordered by the Commission in a negative decision.
To garancijo dopolnjuje klavzula, ki daje kupcu, družbi GRAWE, pravico, da ji Gradiščanska nadomesti stroške v zvezi s kakršnim koli povračilom, ki bi ga zahtevala Komisija v negativni odločbi.
If the State aid rules were to prohibit such an adjustment of the sales price, the buyer could, according to this clause, rescind the contract.
Če bi pravila o državni pomoči prepovedovala tako prilagoditev prodajne cene, bi lahko kupec v skladu s to klavzulo odstopil od pogodbe.
The recommendation by HSBC
Priporočilo družbe HSBC
However, in view of the other criteria — reliability of the purchase price payment, continued operation of the bank and avoidance of use of Ausfallhaftung, capital increases and transaction security — HSBC recommends a sale to GRAWE (see paragraphs 27 to 29 of the opening decision for further details).
Vendar pa glede na druga merila – zanesljivost plačila nakupne cene, neprekinjeno delovanje banke in izogibanje uporabi garancije Ausfallhaftung, dokapitalizacija in varnost transakcije – družba HSBC priporoča prodajo družbi GRAWE (več podatkov je v odstavkih od 27 do 29 odločitve o sprožitvi postopka).
DECISION TO INITIATE THE FORMAL INVESTIGATION PROCEDURE UNDER ARTICLE 88(2) OF THE EC TREATY
ODLOČITEV O SPROŽITVI FORMALNEGA POSTOPKA PREISKAVE V SKLADU S ČLENOM 88(2) POGODBE ES
The Commission decided to open the formal investigation procedure under Article 88(2) of the EC Treaty for the following main reasons.
Komisija se je odločila, da bo sprožila formalni postopek preiskave v skladu s členom 88(2) Pogodbe ES zaradi naslednjih glavnih razlogov.
Applying the principles set out in the XXIIIrd Report on Competition Policy [18], the Commission could not establish that the sale had taken place free of aid, especially as it was obvious that the Consortium, while submitting a substantially higher offer, was not chosen as the buyer of BB by the Province of Burgenland.
Z uporabo načel, določenih v XXIII. poročilu o konkurenčni politiki [18], Komisija ni mogla ugotoviti, ali se je prodaja opravila brez pomoči, predvsem ker je bilo očitno, da Gradiščanska konzorcija, čeprav je predložil bistveno višjo ponudbo, ni izbrala za kupca banke BB.
In addition, there were a number of discrepancies in the way the bidding procedure was described by the complainant on the one hand and Austria on the other.
Poleg tega so bile med tem, kako sta razpisni postopek opisovala pritožnik in Avstrija, številne razlike.
Doubts related to the tender procedure
Dvomi glede razpisnega postopka
As to the tender procedure, the Commission expressed doubts as to whether it could be regarded as transparent, unconditional and non-discriminatory.
V zvezi z razpisnim postopkom je Komisija izrazila dvome o tem, ali lahko šteje za preglednega, brezpogojnega in nediskriminacijskega.
The Commission especially doubted whether the bidders had been treated in the same way during the tender procedure and also whether a private vendor would have imposed some of the conditions attached to the sale as set out in HSBC’s process letter.
Komisija je predvsem dvomila, ali so bili ponudniki med razpisnim postopkom obravnavani enako in ali bi zasebni prodajalec uveljavljal nekatere pogoje za prodajo, kakor so določeni v pismu o postopku družbe HSBC.