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Clearing Method: Physical delivery                           
Settlement Period: T + 3, T = Day of trade                
                                                                             
Supplementary Fee: 0.03%; 6,000 francs maximum

Commission: 200 francs & 0.4-1% based on volume;
negotiable above 20 million francs
Transaction Tax: 0.17%; buyer & seller

• The market capitalization or equity capital of the company must be at least one million ECU.
• The securities to be listed must be freely negotiable.
• The company must have published or filed its annual accounts for the 3 financial years preceding the application.
• Foreign companies must submit documents proving that the securities are officially quoted or in regular and sustained trading in Belgium or abroad.

• Companies must provide the following with their application for listing: latest version of articles of association; prospectus and any supplements, which must be approved; 3 latest annual reports and balance sheets.
• Once listed, the company must provide shareholders with the following information on an on-going basis: notification of general meetings, dividends and other rights, new issues, conversions, amendments to rights, changes in major holdings, half-yearly statements with provisional results of turnover, profits, orders, etc.
• Any event or information that may affect the company’s share price must be disclosed immediately.

• All shareholders in a target company must be treated equally.
• When seeking to acquire controlling interest in a company, an investor must notify authorities of this intent in advance. The investor must also offer minority shareholders the best price paid for the company’s shares in the past 12 months.

• The Commission de la Bourse supervises the markets to prevent irregularities.
• Insider trading is prohibited and punishable by fines and imprisonment.
• A circuit breaker is triggered if the Bel20 index exceeds a specified fluctuation margin in a very short period of time. This will lead to an automatic suspension of trading.
• If a company’s total capital is 100 million francs or more, authorities must be notified when a third or more of the share capital changes hands.
• An investor acquiring or selling shares representing 5% multiples of a company’s voting rights must disclose the holding to the company and authorities.
• The Securities Houses Intervention Fund protects investors that face stockbroker default. The assistance is limited to 2.5 million francs per creditor per bankruptcy; total intervention per bankruptcy may not exceed 200 million francs.

Also see Listing Requirements, Disclosure Requirements, and Mergers/Acquisitions.

     Restrictions

     There are no restrictions on foreign investments.

     Taxation