Prosecution of unauthorised investment business

(1) An undertaking in respect of which it is established, or facts justify the assumption, that it is conducting unauthorised investment business, or that it is or was involved in the initiation, conclusion, or winding-up of unauthorised investment business, as well as the members of the governing bodies, the shareholders, and the employees of such an undertaking, must, at the request of the Federal Institute, provide information on all business matters and produce all documents. A member of a governing body, a shareholder, or an employee must, at the request of the Federal Institute, provide information and produce documents even after leaving the governing body or the undertaking. The Federal Institute may give the undertakings and persons named in the first sentence instructions for safeguarding customer funds, data, and assets.
(2) Insofar as this is necessary to establish the nature or extent of the business or activities, the Federal Institute may conduct examinations on the premises of the undertaking and on the premises of the persons and undertakings obliged to provide information and produce documents under subsection (1). The officials of the Federal Institute may, for this purpose, 1. enter and inspect premises under the first sentence during usual business and operating hours, 2. enter and inspect premises under the first sentence even outside usual business and operating hours, in order to prevent imminent dangers to public order and security, and 3. enter and inspect premises that also serve as a dwelling, in order to prevent imminent dangers to public order and security; the fundamental right under Article 13 of the Basic Law is restricted to this extent.
(3) The officials of the Federal Institute may search the premises of the undertaking and the premises of the persons obliged to provide information and produce documents under subsection (1). In the course of the search, the officials may also search the persons obliged to provide information and produce documents, for the purpose of seizing objects within the meaning of subsection (4). The fundamental right under Article 13 of the Basic Law is restricted to this extent. Searches of business premises and of persons must, except in the event of imminent danger, be ordered by the judge. Searches of premises serving as a dwelling must be ordered by the judge. The local court in whose district the premises are located has jurisdiction. An appeal against the judicial decision is admissible; sections 306 to 310 and 311a of the Code of Criminal Procedure apply correspondingly. A record must be made of the search. It must state the responsible department, the reason, time, and place of the search and its result and, where no judicial order was made, also the facts that gave rise to the assumption of imminent danger.
(4) The officials of the Federal Institute may seize objects that may be of significance as evidence for establishing the facts.
(5) The persons concerned must tolerate measures under subsections (2) and (3), first sentence, and (4). A person obliged to provide information may refuse to answer questions the answering of which would expose that person, or one of the relatives named in section 383(1), points 1 to 3, of the Code of Civil Procedure, to the risk of criminal prosecution or of proceedings under the Act on Regulatory Offences.
(6) The Federal Institute may retrieve individual data from the file under section 24c(1), first sentence, of the Banking Act, insofar as this is necessary to perform its supervisory tasks under this Act, in particular with regard to unauthorised investment business, and provided there is particular urgency in the individual case. Section 24c(4) of the Banking Act applies correspondingly.
(7) Subsections (1) to (6) apply correspondingly to other undertakings and persons, provided that 1. facts justify the assumption that they are involved in the investment or management of investment funds provided in another state contrary to a prohibition existing there, and 2. the competent authority of the other state makes a corresponding request to the Federal Institute.
(8) Insofar and as long as facts justify the assumption, or it is established, that an undertaking is conducting unauthorised investment business, the Federal Institute may inform the public of this suspicion or finding, naming the undertaking's name or firm. The first sentence applies correspondingly where an undertaking, although not conducting unauthorised investment business, creates a corresponding impression in public. Before deciding to publish the information, the undertaking must be given a hearing. Where the information published by the Federal Institute proves to be false, or the underlying circumstances are shown to have been incorrectly represented, the Federal Institute informs the public of this in the same manner in which it previously published the information concerned.