Govt Adopts Amendments to Securities Market Act

Ljubljana, 29 November

The government has adopted amendments to the securities market act to include provisions prescribed by the EU prospectus directive. The amendments, adopted at Tuesday's correspondence session, are expected to improve investor protection and the effectiveness of the securities market.

The prospectus provisions envisage the harmonisation of prospectuses for the listing of securities across the EU. This is part of the EU's efforts to establish an efficient internal market for financial services.
A key advantage of the prospectus directive is that an entity can use it to seek support from financial markets throughout the 25-nation union.
The prospectus will function as a passport: a prospectus approved by competent authorities in an EU member state would be valid throughout the EU and would not need authorisation from the another market regulatory body.
Apart from transposing the prospectus directive, the amendments also allow the demutualisation of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange (LJSE) and enable partnerships between the LJSE and other stock exchanges in the EU.
Entering into partnerships with other stock exchanges has been a long-standing desire of the LJSE, the ministry said, adding that the stock exchange will have to respond to the growing wave of consolidation across Europe.
In order to improve the transparency of trading (it is estimated that two-thirds of all securities are traded outside the organised market), the amendments commit informed investors to report to the stock market about any deals in excess of SIT 1bn (EUR 4.17m) that are carried out outside the stock exchange.
The ministry expects this will provide a more realistic estimate of the market price and hence a clearer picture of the conditions on the capital market.

Govt Adopts Amendments to Securities Market Act

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