Regulation on Procedures, Conditions and Method of Transfer of Management Activities of Voluntary Pension Funds - Unofficial Consolidated Text (NN, No. 52/14 and 41/17)

UNOFFICIAL CONSOLIDATED TEXT NN 52/2014 dated 28.04.2014. NN 41/17 dated 27.04.2017. (effective from 01.05.2017.) CROATIAN FINANCIAL SERVICES SUPERVISORY AGENCY Pursuant to Article 87(5), Article 90(4) and Article 94(8) of the Voluntary Pension Funds Act (Official Gazette No. 19/2014, hereinafter: the Act), the Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (hereinafter: the Agency) at its Management Board meeting held on 18 April 2014 adopts THE REGULATION ON PROCEDURES, CONDITIONS AND METHOD OF TRANSFER OF MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES OF VOLUNTARY PENSION FUNDS Introductory Provisions Article 1. This Regulation further specifies the procedure, conditions and method of voluntary and compulsory transfer of management activities of voluntary pension funds. Article 2. Certain terms used in this Regulation have the following meanings:

1. Agency means the Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency.
2. Act means the Voluntary Pension Funds Act (Official Gazette No. 19/2014).
3. Pension company means a company managing voluntary pension funds.
4. Pension fund means a voluntary pension fund.

VOLUNTARY TRANSFER OF MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES OF PENSION FUNDS Content, Publication Method and Delivery of Information and Notices Regarding the Voluntary Transfer of Management Activities of Pension Funds Article 3. (1) The transferring company and the receiving company shall, within eight days of receipt of the Agency's approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund, each publish on its website in a conspicuous location an information notice regarding the transfer of management activities of a pension fund, which shall contain at least the data specified in paragraph (2) of this Article. (2) The transferring company shall, within fifteen days of obtaining the Agency's approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund, notify all members of the transferring pension fund about the following: a) the company taking over management of the pension fund, b) all procedures and actions to be undertaken in connection with the transfer of management activities, c) the period within which management activities will be transferred to the receiving company, pursuant to Article 87(3)(2) of the Act, d) the rights of members of the transferring pension fund during the transfer process, particularly the right to exemption from exit fees, pursuant to Article 90(3) of the Act, e) legal consequences of the transfer of pension fund management. (3) The transferring company shall deliver the notice referred to in paragraph (2) of this Article to members of the transferring pension fund by one of the following methods:

1. via electronic mail, if a member has provided a valid email address to the pension company and selected this method of data delivery, or
2. by postal mail.

COMPULSORY TRANSFER OF MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES OF PENSION FUNDS Non-deferrable Management Activities Article 4. Management activities of pension funds under Article 93(1) of the Act that cannot be deferred are considered, for example: a) activities whose non-performance by the depositary would cause damage to the pension fund, b) administrative activities under Article 11(3)(3), (4), (6) and (7) of the Act. Public Call Procedure for Collecting Bids to Take Over Management and Selection of the Most Suitable Company in Compulsory Transfer of Pension Fund Management Article 5. (1) The depositary shall, within sixty days from the occurrence of grounds for compulsory transfer of management activities of a pension fund under Article 92 of the Act, conduct an appropriate bid collection procedure and select a new company. (2) The depositary shall publish a public call for bids to take over management of a pension fund in one or more daily newspapers sold throughout or predominantly within the territory of the Republic of Croatia, as well as on the depositary's website. This call invites all interested companies that meet the conditions for managing pension funds and are willing to take over management of a pension fund, to submit a bid for managing the pension fund under temporary depositary administration within fifteen days. (3) If more than one company meeting the conditions for taking over pension fund management activities responds to the call under paragraph (2) of this Article, the depositary shall, when selecting a company, exclusively consider the interests of the pension fund members. In doing so, the depositary may also be guided by the following criteria: a) past performance, success and results of the pension company, b) reputation of the management board members of the pension company, c) compliance of the pension company's conduct with the provisions of the Act and regulations adopted thereunder, d) timely and proper fulfillment of the pension company's obligations, e) cooperation between the pension company and its members, f) cooperation between the pension company and the depositary, g) other relevant criteria for protecting the interests of pension fund members. (4) Following the procedure under paragraph (1) of this Article, the depositary and the receiving company shall without delay conclude a contract for the transfer of management activities. (5) After concluding the contract under paragraph (4) of this Article, and prior to the transfer of management activities, the receiving company must obtain the Agency's approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund. The Agency shall decide on an application for granting approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund within fifteen days from receipt of a complete application; otherwise, the application shall be deemed approved.

Content, Publication Method and Delivery of Information and Notices Regarding the Compulsory Transfer of Management Activities of Pension Funds Article 6. (1) The depositary temporarily managing the transferring pension fund shall, within eight days of receiving the Agency's approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund, publish on its website in a conspicuous location an information notice regarding the transfer of management activities, which shall contain at least the data specified in paragraph (3) of this Article. (2) Within the period under paragraph (1) of this Article, the receiving company shall also publish on its website an information notice regarding the transfer of management activities containing the data under paragraph (3)(a), (c) and (d). (3) The depositary temporarily managing the transferring pension fund shall, within fifteen days of obtaining the Agency's approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund, notify all members of the transferring fund about the following: a) the reason for the transfer of management activities, b) the selected company taking over management of the pension fund and the criteria used for that selection, c) all procedures and actions to be undertaken in connection with the transfer of management activities, d) the period within which management activities will be transferred to the receiving company, pursuant to Article 94(4) of the Act, e) the rights of members of the transferring pension fund during the transfer process, particularly the right to exemption from exit fees, pursuant to Article 90(3) of the Act. (4) The depositary shall deliver the notice under paragraph (3) of this Article to members of the transferring pension fund by one of the following methods:

1. via electronic mail, if a member has provided a valid email address to the pension company or depositary and selected this method of data delivery, or
2. by postal mail. (5) To fulfill the prerequisites for notifying members in accordance with paragraph (4) of this Article, from the moment the grounds for compulsory transfer of management activities occur, the pension company whose funds are having their management transferred, or other entities under Article 130(1)(2) and (3) of the Act, shall enable the depositary continuous access to the members register. (6) In addition to the right to remuneration under Article 93(3) of the Act, the depositary has the right to reimbursement of justified expenses incurred for conducting the procedure for selecting another company (member notification costs), which shall be covered from the assets of the pension fund.

Delivery of Applications by Electronic Means Article 6a. (1) The receiving pension company may deliver to the Agency an application for granting approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund and the required documentation in accordance with the Technical Guideline for using the WEB form input service and electronic document delivery, and the Guideline for completing WEB forms for pension companies. (2) It is deemed that the pension company has delivered the documentation under paragraph (1) of this Article at the time it is recorded on the server for sending such documentation. Final Provisions Article 7. This Regulation shall enter into force on the eighth day following its publication in the Official Gazette (Narodne novine). Class: 011-02/14-04/22 Reference No.: 326-440-14-1 Zagreb, 18 April 2014.

Chairman of the Management Board Petar-Pierre Matek, s.r.

NN 41/17 dated 27.04.2017. (effective from 01.05.2017.) The Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (hereinafter in the text: the Agency), pursuant to Article 87(5), Article 90(4) and Article 94(8) of the Voluntary Pension Funds Act (Official Gazette No. 19/2014), at its Management Board meeting held on 13 April 2017, adopts THE REGULATION ON AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS TO THE REGULATION ON PROCEDURES, CONDITIONS AND METHOD OF TRANSFER OF MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES OF VOLUNTARY PENSION FUNDS Article 1. In the Regulation on procedures, conditions and method of transfer of management activities of voluntary pension funds (Official Gazette No. 52/14), following Article 6, a heading and Article 6a are added, which read: "Delivery of Applications by Electronic Means Article 6a. (1) The receiving pension company may deliver to the Agency an application for granting approval for the transfer of management activities of a pension fund and the required documentation in accordance with the Technical Guideline for using the WEB form input service and electronic document delivery, and the Guideline for completing WEB forms for pension companies. (2) It is deemed that the pension company has delivered the documentation under paragraph (1) of this Article at the time it is recorded on the server for sending such documentation." Article 2. This Regulation shall be published in the Official Gazette (Narodne novine) and shall enter into force on 1 May 2017. Class: 011-02/14-04/22 Reference No.: 326-01-440-17-3 Zagreb, 13 April 2017. Chairman of the Management Board Petar-Pierre Matek, s.r.