(1) The following may be involved in a cross-border merger:
1. share capital companies in the sense of Article 119 no. 1 of the Directive (EU) 2017/1132 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 relating to certain aspects of company law (OJ L 169 of 30 June 2017, p. 46) as last amended by Directive (EU) 2021/23 (OJ L 22 of 22 January 2021, p.1) as companies being acquired, acquiring companies, or new companies
a) that have been established in accordance with the laws of a Member State of the European Union or of some other Contracting Party of the Agreement creating the European Economic Area and
b) that have their seat as recorded in the by-laws, their central administration, or their principal place of business in a Member State of the European Union or some other Contracting Party of the Agreement creating the European Economic Area, as well as
2. commercial partnerships within the meaning of section 3 (1) no. 1, as acquiring companies or new companies, who as a rule have no more than 500 employees.
(2) The following may not be involved in a cross-border merger:
1. cooperative societies, even in those cases in which they would be covered by the definition laid down in Article 2 no. 1 of the Directive in accordance with the laws of another Member State of the European Union or some other Contracting Party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, as well as
2. companies
a) the object of which is the collective investment, in keeping with the principle of risk diversification, of capital provided to them by the public, and
b) the shares of which companies may be repurchased or redeemed, at the request of the holders of shares, directly or indirectly out of the assets of that company.
Actions taken by such a company to ensure that the stock exchange value of its shares does not vary significantly from its net asset value are equivalent to the repurchases or redemptions within the meaning of sentence 1 no. 2 letter (b).