Autorité Des Marchés Financiers (AMF): Public Consultation On A Simplified Examination And Approval Procedure For Prospectuses Issued By Eligible Companies

Under its Better Regulation approach¹, the AMF had raised the possibility of introducing a simplified ex-ante control procedure, in cooperation with the relevant professionals and on the basis of an eligible application, for the corporate financing transactions of listed companies.

On the recommendation of the Disclosures and Corporate Finance Consultative Commission, the AMF Board approved the formation of a working group to examine the desirability and feasibility of a simplified, or "simple track", examination and approval procedure for the prospectuses prepared by certain listed companies when issuing securities to the public. The so-called Simple Track working group was chaired by Bernard Field, an AMF Board member.

The group's findings are now being put out to public consultation until 31 January 2008. They include an amendment to Article 5 of Instruction 2005-11 of 13 December 2005 on disclosure requirements for public offerings, pursuant to Title I of Book II of the AMF General Regulation. Responses to the consultation should be sent by email to contact@amf-france.org

An optional procedure with obvious benefits

For the reform, the AMF undertakes to:

• examine applications to use the simple track procedure within a short, predetermined timeframe;
• ensure that an issuer receives an answer to its application within two business days;
• facilitate document scrutiny through the use of standard formats prepared by the French Association of Investment Firms (AFEI) in accordance with the AMF.

The document being put out for consultation sets forth:

1. the eligibility criteria for the simple track procedure, with details of:
   • eligible issuers,
   • relevant transactions,
   • standard formats,
   • the documents on which the AMF bases its decision,
   • the means by which the AMF accepts or rejects the application;
2. the conditions for implementing the simple track procedure, with proposals for:
   • legal transposition of the procedure into the AMF's rules and regulations,
   • rules governing the publication and updating of standard formats.

¹Summary paper titled "Outcome of the consultation – The AMF's commitments", published 30 November 2006.