Assessment criteria and prohibition

(1) The Bundesanstalt may, within the assessment period, prohibit the proposed acquisition of the significant holding or its increase, where facts justify the assumption that 1. the person subject to the notification obligation, or, where that person is a legal person, also a statutory or constitutional representative, or, where that person is a commercial partnership, also a partner, is not reliable or otherwise does not meet the standards required in the interest of a sound and prudent management of the securities institution; in case of doubt this also applies where facts justify the assumption that the person has raised the funds used for the acquisition of the significant holding by an act that objectively satisfies the elements of a criminal offence; 2. the securities institution will not be, or will not remain, able to satisfy the supervisory requirements, in particular under this Act, the Banking Act, the Securities Trading Act, the Financial Conglomerates Supervision Act, Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 and Regulation (EU) 2019/2033, or that, as a result of the establishment or increase of the significant holding, the securities institution would be integrated, together with the holder of the significant holding, into a group of undertakings whose network of holdings or lack of economic transparency impairs effective supervision of the securities institution, an effective exchange of information between the competent bodies, or the allocation of responsibilities between them; 3. the securities institution would, as a result of the establishment or increase of the significant holding, become a subsidiary undertaking of a securities institution or credit institution having its seat in a third country that is not effectively supervised in the state of its seat or head office, or whose competent supervisory body is not willing to cooperate satisfactorily with the Bundesanstalt; 4. the future manager is not reliable or does not have the required professional qualifications; 5. money laundering or terrorist financing within the meaning of Article 1 of Directive (EU) 2015/849 is taking place or has taken place, or an attempt has been made to commit such offences, in connection with the proposed acquisition or increase of the holding, or the acquisition or increase could increase the risk of such conduct; or 6. the person subject to the notification obligation does not have the necessary financial soundness; this is in particular the case where, on account of that person's capital resources or financial position, that person cannot satisfy the particular requirements placed by law on the own funds and liquidity of a securities institution.
(2) The Bundesanstalt may also prohibit the acquisition or increase of the holding where the particulars under section 24(1), also in conjunction with Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/1946 or a statutory instrument under section 14(3), or the additional information requested under section 25, are incomplete or incorrect, or do not satisfy the requirements of the statutory instrument under section 14(3). In the cases of the first sentence, the Bundesanstalt may, instead of prohibiting the proposed acquisition of the significant holding or its proposed increase, also issue orders, within the assessment period, to the person subject to the notification obligation that are suitable and necessary to eliminate the assumption of the grounds for prohibition referred to in subsection (1), nos. 1 to 6.
(3) The Bundesanstalt may not impose preconditions as to the level of the holding to be acquired or the proposed increase of the holding, nor may it, in its examination, have regard to the economic needs of the market.
(4) Where the Bundesanstalt decides, on completion of the assessment, to prohibit the acquisition or increase of the holding, it communicates its decision to the person subject to the notification obligation within two working days, and within the assessment period, stating the reasons. Comments and reservations of the bodies competent for the person subject to the notification obligation must be reproduced in the decision; the prohibition may be based only on the grounds named in subsections (1) and (2). Where the acquisition or increase of the holding is not prohibited within the assessment period, the acquisition or increase may be carried out; the rights of the Bundesanstalt under section 27 remain unaffected. The Bundesanstalt may set a period after whose expiry the person subject to the notification obligation must notify it whether the proposed acquisition or increase was carried out or not. After expiry of that period, the person subject to the notification obligation must submit the notification to the Bundesanstalt without delay.