European Business Register Update Green Paper; Br to BR links

1. European Business Register UpdateGreen Paper; Br to BR links ECRF - Budapest June 2010

2. Outline • Membership • Traffic & Products • Official Register Data • Service needs • CNI • REID • DOR • BDS • Next steps

3. Membership • 2009-2010 addition of Guernsey, Lithuania and Czech Republic • 25 members, of which 20 are EU Member States     • Advanced discussions with Slovak Republic • hope to finalise accession in the coming months         • Strongly encouraged by Commission to seek funding from them to bring coverage to all 27 MS • Please contact us if you are interested in joining such a project

4. Services • Lithuania went live in June • we have currently 22 members online • Slovenia started distribution few months ago • Luxembourg distributing from the end of June • 15 distributors      • Product increases from existing members • Finalising transition of the French platform to InfoGreffe. • Gap in the provision of French data will be resolved in the coming weeks • New Platform will see new product • Must move to 24/7 over a reasonable period

5. Traffic and Products • 327,000 information retrievals 2009 • France back on the network shortly • New proactive distributors • Optimistic that the network can become self financing • Free - but valuable - company search free • Vital service for Know Your Client activities • But royalties lag behind the success of the network

6. Services used in 2009

7. Official Register Data • Changes in Germany well settled down now with Bundesanzeiger the data provider as the nominee of the Federal authorities • In Belgium we move (both in ECRF and EBR) to the KBO/BCE - The Crossroads Bank - official BR data provider for Belgium • EBR transfers information from the Business Registers on the basis that it is the same data as would be retrieved directly from the registers • We need to move to being able to issue certificates to that effect

8. Other Activities • New website online now • Better connections to distribution options • New Projects • SPOCS in the Internal Market • BOWNET • Survey of Beneficial Ownership information on business registers • Will be a follow up action of contacting colleagues towards the end of 2010 • Respond to the Commission and Council on integration of EBR to e-Justice • Integration analysis second half of 2010 • Partial integration possible from 2nd half of 2011

9. Technical upgrade needs for EBR • Authentication of message source and integrity • Easier company location and identification • Demand for full document set to allow all BR document types • Published code lists • Ease of translation of codes • Standard messages for user subgroups and purposes • Scalability for new membership and product • Platform now being deployed • Tested on some partner sites • To be deployed in Q1 2010

10. Requirements identified in BRITE • Defined the building blocks for communications between business registers themselves • Identify registers/registries • Identify entities in registers • Authenticate message source • Enable message definition • Authenticate message meanings • Provide a new legal context for verifying those components • Identical to the enhancements of current EBR services

11. Central Names Index - CNI • Enhance searching options for clients • Identified as a vital service in itself • Call to Action at Sundsvall General Meeting • Restructuring data model and import process • Next Steps • Receive remaining data for Phase 1 • Factor the legal input and usage rules into the design • Continue with the development of update automation

12. Spain Estonia UK Greece Guernsey Ireland Italy Jersey Lithuania Netherlands Norway Serbia Slovenia Ukraine ………. ………. Data loaded: 11,337,281 companies…. and counting

13. CNI Content • Company Name • REID • Seat; the city where the company is located particularly if that is needed to distinguish companies from each other • Name; roman alphabet equivalent • to cater for Cyrillic alphabets for example • Name Status; indicates if the name is a current name or a previous name of the company • Name Qualifier; indicates the type of name being provided, for example whether it is the legal name of the company or a trading name

14. Registered Entity ID - REID • The ability to uniquely identify businesses at a world level – or for our purposes entities in registers • We are deliberately using the generic term “entities” although what is being addressed here is primarily the identification of companies • The process of identification can be applied to any entity that is entered in a register • Apart from other business types, such as limited liability partnerships, credit unions or co-operatives, we could also be discussing company directors, auditors or disqualified persons

15. IE CROCR .358843 -60 Company Register in CRO, Dublin, Ireland Check Digits Number on the Register ISO Country Code

16. REID - Usage • We should conclude that discussion of the REID has proceeded long enough and that it is now time to deploy it on business registers • Will only require a change as to how numbers are presented - not how they are stored or processed • Positive response from ECB and Eurostat • Let’s put together a team of first movers to put it in place this year

17. Directory of Registers • Required for the REID • Established the Repository • Implemented the Portal • As agreed in Sundsvall Yves Gonner will coordinate entry to the directory • Linked to GBRO • Good coordination essential • Must not duplicate effort

18. Ways of determining the meaning of messages • Standard Messages • Work commenced by Yves Gonner last year • Published codelists • Requires a standard message structure • Permit any message to be created and transferred • Permit registers to publish code values • Enable a process of providing translations of those codes and definitions

19. Branch disclosure service - BDS • Track each night the status of companies - usually to determine if the home company of a branch is dissolved • Model as launched last year had three issues identified by users - Germany in particular • Lack of evidence that programme had run each night • Lack of a service level agreement • Difficulty in paying an EEIG for the provision of a service

20. BDS - solutions • Programme changed to make transparent the date and time each entity was updated • SLA Draft prepared for discussion • Fees not to be imposed this year and if imposed will be determined in accordance with the following principles: • The disclosure by the EEIG of the cost of running the service • The users’ feedback on the value of the service including requests for enhancements • The possibility of alternative means of covering costs • Get users to define needs for the next version • Avoid bespoke solutions • Learn from each other

21. Commission Green Paper • Followed from the BRITE conclusions • Commission now carrying out impact assessment • EBR working closely with the Commission to find good solutions • EBR response based on three principles • The fact that the requirements of BR to public and BR to BR communications are the same • The fact that Business Registers wish to leverage the financial and administrative commitments already made • Including the new task of moving to the new platform • The fact that the BR to BR traffic envisaged is small relative to the volume of BR to public traffic

22. The Sundsvall Conference • Under the Swedish EU Council Presidency, Bolagsverket (the Swedish Companies Registration Office) arranged a conference under the heading “Cross Border Business Information Sharing” in November 2009. • 70 delegates from 29 countries • Considered the Commission Green Paper and a presentation on that paper by the Commission • In considering necessary cooperation between the BRs, and the need to accomplish a suitable solution for that cooperation, the issue of communication was explored from the legal, functional and technical perspectives

23. Sundsvall unanimous declaration THE CONFERENCE: • ACCEPTS the need to establish a standardised and legally valid solution for cross border cooperation between business registers across Europe as required in the relevant EU directives and otherwise • COMMITS TO participation in a process for the identification and implementation of the necessary actions, including the creation of a standardised and secure messaging environment; to the early establishment of a directory within which business registers will be properly identified and the use of a uniform company identification system; to working with existing projects; to the establishment and identification of the relevant authorities and institutions to undertake the agreed actions and • to have a fully functioning infrastructure in place by January 1, 2012

24. Tasks • Definition of the messages that BRs need or wish to exchange • Establishment of an ontology – or way of understanding – those messages • Establishment of the Directory of Register • Establishment of the full index of company names • Deployment of the REID • Completion of the platform • Identify further building blocks

25. Institutions • European Commission (both on Company Law and e-Justice) • The relevant working groups in the Council • The Company Law Experts Group • EBR • ECRF • Participants in the e-Justice domain • For international purposes IACA and CRF • Such other institutions as might be established to regulate BR to BR connections

26. Propose to join EBR PT IRN ECRF EU/EEA SK MOJ PL LV RE IM CR DE NRW BG IT UC CH FCRO CZ MOJ RO NTRO CY SI SCRS EEA GI CH AT BMJ LI GBOERA MT HU BMC IS ME CRPCC LU RCSL NO BRC RO IE CRO NL KVK DE BA FI PRH EE CRI DK DCCA BE KBO/BCE TR MK CRM GB CH SE BOLS AT TA IT IC JE JFSC HR GR ACCI LT SECR FR INPI EU Applicants LV LUR RS SBRA ES SCR SI AJPES GG GR EBR UA IRC Jurisdictions marked CC RRR have different representation in the EBR and the ECRF. We live in a complex world

27. Work in partnership with the diverse institutions that make up our complex world Work with the European Commission to establish transparency for businesses across Europe for both official and public purposes Complete the new platform to ensure a solid base for communications Make the services resulting from that work available to the community as a whole EBR Commitment