Article 40

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Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) > TITLE IV > CHAPTER IV > Section 3 > Article 40
Title:
Article 40
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Description: 
Bridge institution tool
Main content: 
1.  

In order to give effect to the bridge institution tool and having regard to the need to maintain critical functions in the bridge institution, Member States shall ensure that resolution authorities have the power to transfer to a bridge institution:

(a) 

shares or other instruments of ownership issued by one or more institutions under resolution;

(b) 

all or any assets, rights or liabilities of one or more institutions under resolution.

Subject to Article 85, the transfer referred to in the first subparagraph may take place without obtaining the consent of the shareholders of the institutions under resolution or any third party other than the bridge institution, and without complying with any procedural requirements under company or securities law.

2.  

The bridge institution shall be a legal person that meets all of the following requirements:

(a) 

it is wholly or partially owned by one or more public authorities which may include the resolution authority or the resolution financing arrangement and is controlled by the resolution authority;

(b) 

it is created for the purpose of receiving and holding some or all of the shares or other instruments of ownership issued by an institution under resolution or some or all of the assets, rights and liabilities of one or more institutions under resolution with a view to maintaining access to critical functions and selling the institution or entity referred to in point (b), (c) or (d) of Article 1(1).

The application of the bail-in tool for the purpose referred to in point (b) of Article 43(2) shall not interfere with the ability of the resolution authority to control the bridge institution.

3.  
When applying the bridge institution tool, the resolution authority shall ensure that the total value of liabilities transferred to the bridge institution does not exceed the total value of the rights and assets transferred from the institution under resolution or provided by other sources.
4.  

Subject to Article 37(7), any consideration paid by the bridge institution shall benefit:

(a) 

the owners of the shares or instruments of ownership, where the transfer to the bridge institution has been effected by transferring shares or instruments of ownership issued by the institution under resolution from the holders of those shares or instruments to the bridge institution;

(b) 

the institution under resolution, where the transfer to the bridge institution has been effected by transferring some or all of the assets or liabilities of the institution under resolution to the bridge institution.

5.  
When applying the bridge institution tool, the resolution authority may exercise the transfer power more than once in order to make supplemental transfers of shares or other instruments of ownership issued by an institution under resolution or, as the case may be, assets, rights or liabilities of the institution under resolution.
6.  

Following an application of the bridge institution tool, the resolution authority may:

(a) 

transfer rights, assets or liabilities back from the bridge institution to the institution under resolution, or the shares or other instruments of ownership back to their original owners, and the institution under resolution or original owners shall be obliged to take back any such assets, rights or liabilities, or shares or other instruments of ownership, provided that the conditions laid down in paragraph 7 are met;

(b) 

transfer, shares or other instruments of ownership, or assets, rights or liabilities from the bridge institution to a third party.

7.  

Resolution authorities may transfer shares or other instruments of ownership, or assets, rights or liabilities back from the bridge institution in one of the following circumstances:

(a) 

the possibility that the specific shares or other instruments of ownership, assets, rights or liabilities might be transferred back is stated expressly in the instrument by which the transfer was made;

(b) 

the specific shares or other instruments of ownership, assets, rights or liabilities do not in fact fall within the classes of, or meet the conditions for transfer of shares or other instruments of ownership, assets, rights or liabilities specified in the instrument by which the transfer was made.

Such a transfer back may be made within any period, and shall comply with any other conditions, stated in that instrument for the relevant purpose.

8.  
Transfers between the institution under resolution, or the original owners of shares or other instruments of ownership, on the one hand, and the bridge institution on the other, shall be subject to the safeguards referred to in Chapter VII of Title IV.
9.  
For the purposes of exercising the rights to provide services or to establish itself in another Member State in accordance with Directive 2013/36/EU or Directive 2014/65/EU, a bridge institution shall be considered to be a continuation of the institution under resolution, and may continue to exercise any such right that was exercised by the institution under resolution in respect of the assets, rights or liabilities transferred.

For other purposes, resolution authorities may require that a bridge institution be considered to be a continuation of the institution under resolution, and be able to continue to exercise any right that was exercised by the institution under resolution in respect of the assets, rights or liabilities transferred.

10.  
Member States shall ensure that the bridge institution may continue to exercise the rights of membership and access to payment, clearing and settlement systems, stock exchanges, investor compensation schemes and deposit guarantee schemes of the institution under resolution, provided that it meets the membership and participation criteria for participation in such systems.

Notwithstanding the first subparagraph, Member States shall ensure that:

(a) 

access is not denied on the ground that the bridge institution does not possess a rating from a credit rating agency, or that rating is not commensurate to the rating levels required to be granted access to the systems referred to in the first subparagraph;

(b) 

where the bridge institution does not meet the membership or participation criteria for a relevant payment, clearing or settlement system, stock exchange, investor compensation scheme or deposit guarantee scheme, the rights referred to in the first subparagraph are exercised for such a period of time as may be specified by the resolution authority, not exceeding 24 months, renewable on application by the bridge institution to the resolution authority.

11.  
Without prejudice to Chapter VII of Title IV, shareholders or creditors of the institution under resolution and other third parties whose assets, rights or liabilities are not transferred to the bridge institution shall not have any rights over or in relation to the assets, rights or liabilities transferred to the bridge institution, its management body or senior management.
12.  
The objectives of the bridge institution shall not imply any duty or responsibility to shareholders or creditors of the institution under resolution, and the management body or senior management shall have no liability to such shareholders or creditors for acts and omissions in the discharge of their duties unless the act or omission implies gross negligence or serious misconduct in accordance with national law which directly affects rights of such shareholders or creditors.

Member States may further limit the liability of a bridge institution and its management body or senior management in accordance with national law for acts and omissions in the discharge of their duties.

( 1 ) Regulation (EU) 2019/2033 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on the prudential requirements of investment firms and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 575/2013, (EU) No 600/2014 and (EU) No 806/2014 (OJ L 314, 5.12.2019, p. 1).

( 2 ) Directive (EU) 2019/2034 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on the prudential supervision of investment firms and amending Directives 2002/87/EC, 2009/65/EC, 2011/61/EU, 2013/36/EU, 2014/59/EU and 2014/65/EU (OJ L 314, 5.12.2019, p. 64).

( 3 ) Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013 of 15 October 2013 conferring specific tasks on the European Central Bank concerning policies relating to the prudential supervision of credit institutions (OJ L 287, 29.10.2013, p. 63).

( 4 ) Directive (EU) 2019/2162 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on the issue of covered bonds and covered bond public supervision and amending Directives 2009/65/EC and 2014/59/EU (OJ L 328, 18.12.2019, p. 29).

( 5 ) Directive 2009/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) (OJ L 302, 17.11.2009, p. 32).

( 6 ) Directive 2002/47/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 June 2002 on financial collateral arrangements (OJ L 168, 27.6.2002, p. 43).

( 7 ) Directive 97/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 March 1997 on investor-compensation schemes (OJ L 84, 26.3.1997, p. 22).

( 8 ) Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of 6 May 2003 concerning the definition of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (OJ L 124, 20.5.2003, p. 36).

( 9 ) Council Directive 2001/23/EC of 12 March 2001 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees’ rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of undertakings or businesses (OJ L 82 22.3.2001, p. 16).

( 10 ) Directive 2011/61/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2011 on Alternative Investment Fund Managers and amending Directives 2003/41/EC and 2009/65/EC and Regulations (EC) No 1060/2009 and (EU) No 1095/2010 (OJ L 174, 1.7.2011, p. 1).

( 11 ) Directive 2003/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 on the prospectus to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading and amending Directive 2001/34/EC (OJ L 345, 31.12.2003, p. 64).

( 12 ) Directive 2001/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 May 2001 on the admission of securities to official stock exchange listing and on information to be published on those securities (OJ L 184, 6.7.2001, p. 1).

( 13 ) Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 on the law applicable to contractual obligations (Rome I) (OJ L 177, 4.7.2008, p. 6).

( 14 ) Directive 2004/109/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 2004 on the harmonisation of transparency requirements in relation to information about issuers whose securities are admitted to trading on a regulated market and amending Directive 2001/34/EC (OJ L 390, 31.12.2004, p. 38).

( 15 ) Directive (EU) 2017/2399 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017 amending Directive 2014/59/EU as regards the ranking of unsecured debt instruments in insolvency hierarchy (OJ L 345, 27.12.2017, p. 96).

( *1 ) 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 L 176, 27.6.2013, p. 1).

( *2 ) Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms and amending Council Directive 82/891/EEC, and Directives 2001/24/EC, 2002/47/EC, 2004/25/EC, 2005/56/EC, 2007/36/EC, 2011/35/EU, 2012/30/EU and 2013/36/EU, and Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 648/2012, of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014. p. 190).’;

( *3 ) Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instruments and amending Directive 2002/92/EC and Directive 2011/61/EU (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014, p. 349).’;

( *4 ) Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms and amending Council Directive 82/891/EEC and Directives 2001/24/EC, 2002/47/EC, 2004/25/EC, 2005/56/EC, 2007/36/EC, 2011/35/EU, 2012/30/EU and 2013/36/EU, and Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 648/2012, of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014, p. 190).’;

( *5 ) Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms and amending Council Directive 82/891/EEC and Directives 2001/24/EC, 2002/47/EC, 2004/25/EC, 2005/56/EC, 2007/36/EC, 2011/35/EU, 2012/30/EU and 2013/36/EU, and Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 648/2012, of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014, p. 190).’.

( *6 ) Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms and amending Council Directive 82/891/EEC and Directives 2001/24/EC, 2002/47/EC, 2004/25/EC, 2005/56/EC, 2007/36/EC, 2011/35/EU, 2012/30/EU and 2013/36/EU, and Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 648/2012, of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014, p. 190).’;

( *7 ) Directive 2014/49/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on Deposit Guarantee Schemes (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014, p. 149).

( *8 ) Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms and amending Council Directive 82/891/EEC and Directives 2001/24/EC, 2002/47/EC, 2004/25/EC, 2005/56/EC, 2007/36/EC, 2011/35/EU, 2012/30/EU and 2013/36/EU, and Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 648/2012, of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014, p. 190).’;

( *9 ) Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms and amending Council Directive 82/891/EEC and Directives 2001/24/EC, 2002/47/EC, 2004/25/EC, 2005/56/EC, 2007/36/EC, 2011/35/EU, 2012/30/EU and 2013/36/EU, and Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 648/2012, of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 173, 12.6.2014, p. 190).’.