1. Draft covered bonds legislation
On Friday 15 June 2012 the Federal Government has approved the draft covered bond legislation, which was prepared over the last two years in close co-operation with the National Bank of Belgium, the Belgian banking federation and practitioners, including Stibbe.
The legislation provides, on the one hand, for a dedicated legal framework to govern covered bonds issued by Belgian credit institutions and, on the other hand, will resolve certain legal issues that would otherwise prevent or hinder the transfer of loan receivables originated in Belgium. This approval is the key step towards the submission of the draft legislation to Belgian Parliament, with the objective for it to enter into force later this year.
2. Draft legislation designed to reform Belgian law on security interests in movable property
On Friday 15 June 2012 the Federal Government has approved draft legislation that is designed to fundamentally reform the provisions of Belgian law that deal with security interests in movable property.
Whereas the current system is dominated by pledge arrangements that require actual transfer of possession of the pledged asset to the secured creditor or its agent, the new legislation will introduce a general type of security interest that no longer requires the transfer of possession, but will be perfected through registration in a single national register operated as on online database accessible to all interested parties. This new legislation is inspired by the system operated under Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code in the US and the Draft Common Frame of Reference prepared by the Study Group on a European Civil Code.
