Decree No. 2006-1208 of April 24, 2006 Fixing the Conditions and Procedures for the Issuance and Repayment of Treasury Bills

Treasury Bills Regulation - Treasury Bills Regulation - Treasury Bills Regulation 504 DECREE NO. 2006-1208 OF APRIL 24, 2006 FIXING THE CONDITIONS AND PROCEDURES FOR THE ISSUANCE AND REPAYMENT OF TREASURY BILLS

The President of the Republic, Upon proposal by the Minister of Finance, Having regard to Law No. 67-53 of December 8, 1967, establishing the organic budget law as amended and supplemented by subsequent texts, notably Organic Law No. 2004-42 of May 13, 2004, Having regard to the Public Accounting Code promulgated by Law No. 73-81 of December 31, 1973, as amended and supplemented by subsequent texts, notably Law No. 2005-106 of December 19, 2005, relating to the 2006 Finance Act and notably Article 65 thereof, Having regard to Law No. 94-117 of November 14, 1994, reorganizing the financial market, as amended and supplemented by Law No. 2005-96 of October 18, 2005, strengthening the security of financial relations, Having regard to Decree No. 75-316 of May 30, 1975, defining the powers of the Ministry of Finance, Having regard to Decree No. 97-2462 of December 22, 1997, fixing the conditions and procedures for the issuance and repayment of assimilable Treasury bills, as amended and supplemented by Decree No. 99-1781 of August 9, 1999 and Decree No. 2000-1891 of August 24, 2000, Having regard to Decree No. 99-1782 of August 9, 1999, fixing the conditions and procedures for the issuance and repayment of short-term Treasury bills, Having regard to the opinion of the Administrative Court.

Decrees: Article 1 The State issues Assimilable Bonds, called Short-Term Treasury Bills, Assimilable Treasury Bills, and Zero-Coupon Treasury Bills. Assimilation consists in linking a new issuance to a prior issuance of Treasury bills of the same category.

Article 2 Treasury bills are repaid in a single lump sum at maturity. The repayment maturity and the conditions of the bonds are set upon issuance.

Article 3 Treasury bills are admitted to the operations of the Tunisian Interprofessional Society for the Compensation and Deposit of Securities. Treasury bills with a duration at issuance exceeding one year may be traded on the Tunis Stock Exchange.

Article 4 Treasury bills are issued through an auction reserved for the following designated Treasury securities specialists ("SVT") who have signed a specification document established and issued by decision of the Minister of Finance. The aforementioned specification document sets out the conditions and procedures for the issuance and repayment of Treasury bills, for their own accounts or on behalf of their clients. SVTs are responsible for participating in Treasury bill auctions and guaranteeing their tradability and liquidity, in accordance with the aforementioned specification document.

Treasury Bills Regulation - Treasury Bills Regulation - Treasury Bills Regulation 505 SVTs are selected from banks, corporate stock exchange intermediaries, and financial institutions that are members of the Tunisian Interprofessional Society for the Compensation and Deposit of Securities, hold an account with the Central Bank of Tunisia, and meet the aforementioned specification document.

Article 5 SVTs may submit non-competitive bids. The specification document sets the percentage of non-competitive bids relative to the awarded amount and the conditions for benefiting from these bids.

Article 6 The subscription amounts for Treasury bills are paid to the General Treasury of Tunisia.

Article 7 The Ministry of Finance publishes a semi-annual issuance calendar providing an estimate of the total issuance volume. This calendar is updated as needed. The Ministry of Finance announces before each auction an estimate of the total volume it intends to issue and specifies the lines on which issuances may occur.

Article 8 The Public Treasury may carry out exchange and early repayment operations for Treasury bills through auctions.

Article 9 The provisions of Decree No. 97-2462 of December 22, 1997, fixing the conditions and procedures for the issuance and repayment of assimilable Treasury bills, as amended and supplemented by subsequent texts and notably Decree No. 2000-1891 of August 24, 2000, and the provisions of Decree No. 99-1782 of August 9, 1999, fixing the conditions and procedures for the issuance and repayment of short-term Treasury bills, are hereby repealed.

Article 10 The Minister of Finance is responsible for the implementation of this Decree, which shall be published in the Official Journal of the Tunisian Republic.

Tunis, April 24, 2006 Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.