Investment Services

The Act defines the investment services and divides them to core investment services and non-core (supplementary) investment services. In the former law, such definition was missing. This was one of the most important insufficiencies in connection with expected access of the Slovak Republic to the European Union (``EU''). Provision of investment services is allowed upon an approval of the Office for Financial Market (the ``Office''). Persons providing investment services will be required to have a sufficient capital in compliance with law. Natural persons managing the business of investment services provider will be required to prove sufficient reputation and experience.

Only the Securities Dealers may, based on the approval, provide the core investment services. The core investment services include mainly acceptance and transmission of client's order relating to an investment instrument (the ``Instrument''), exercise of client's order to sell or purchase the Instruments on the client's account or on the account of Securities Dealers, managing portfolios comprising one or more Instruments in accordance with a mandate given by a client and based on a portfolio management contract, and placing and underwriting the Instruments. The Securities Dealers were allowed to provide the most of these services according to the former Act on Securities and the services were only re-defined.

The non-core investment services include e.g. financial consulting, safe custody services, services connected with underwriting and placing the Instruments, etc.