Bosnia and Herzegovina: Decree on Requirements and the Procedure for Issuing the Operating Permit and Approvals for Acquiring the Ownership Shares by Investing and Transferring the Microcredit Foundation's Assets

This law defines the requirements for issuing the operating permit to a microcredit company and for acquiring the ownership shares of a microcredit foundation. By this decree, the Banking Agency of the Federation of BiH (FBA) defines general requirements and the procedure for issuing:

• The operating permit to a microcredit company (MCC) formed by the investment and transfer of a microcredit foundations' assets (alone or together with other domestic and foreign natural persons and legal entities);
• Approval for acquiring the ownership shares of a microcredit foundation (MCF) that invests and transfers its assets into existing MCC, and significant ownership interest of domestic and foreign legal entities and natural persons in this process.

The decree is divided into the following six sections:

• Section 1 comprises general provisions;
• Section 2 discuses the issuing of the operating permit, including:
  • The submission of the application to the FBA;
  • The documents that should be submitted;
  • The least number of shares that need to be held in order to acquire ownership of an MCC.
• Section 3 discusses the process of issuing the approval;
• Section 4 explains the procedure for issuing the permit and the approval, including the punitive measures that the FBA can take if the necessary documents are not presented;
• Section 5 consists of transitional and closing provisions.

The President of the Management Board has signed the decree.